May 31 – Four Iron Range fire departments, along with the Grand Rapids Fire Department were dispatched this morning to a report of a fire at the Meadowview Apartments on 9th Avenue West in Hibbing. The first dispatch, around 7:10 A.M., originally came in as an automatic fire alarm. As units were responding ,reports began coming in about smoke and heat in one of the buildings in the apartment complex. Arriving firefighters discovered an active fire on the third floor. Around 100 people in the building were impacted and some were sheltered from the warm weather in buses from Shubat Transportation and Tactran, Inc. No injuries were reported. Fire departments on the scene included: Hibbing, Keewatin, Chisholm, and Virginia. An aerial ladder from Grand Rapids was cancelled while en route. The Northland Chapter of the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army are assisting residents. The Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s Office and the Hibbing Fire Department are investigating the cause of the fire.

May 30 – Firefighters from Balsam Township, Nashwauk, and Keewatin were dispatched this evening around 8:00 to house fire in the 37000 block of the Northview Road. The second floor of the house was extensively damaged. The Nashwauk Ambulance was also on the scene. The cause of this fire remains under investigation.

May 27 – Fire crews from the Morse-Fall Lake Fire Department, Minnesota DNR, and U.S. Forest Service battled a wildland fire near the Lucky Ponds area near Ely. The fire consumed about 20 acres along the Taconite Trail. Four Fire Boss aircraft and a Chinook helicopter were used in the aerial fire attack, while ground crews were also involved. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. The Taconite Trail was closed for a couple of days, but has since reopened.

April 25-26 – Twenty three members of Minnesota Task Force 2 took part in an Operational Readiness Exercise at the Regional Emergency All-Climate Training Center (REACT) at Camp Douglas, Wisconsin. Task Force 2 participated in a wide range of ”hands-on” rescue scenarios. Minnesota Task Force 2 consists of personnel from the Duluth, Virginia, and Minnesota Air National Guard 148th fire departments. The team has the resources to respond to a variety of incidents including: building collapses, trench rescues, and high level rope rescues. Minnesota Task Force 2 was activated when a partial roof collapse occurred in March at the Miller Hill Mall in Duluth. Photos: Minnesota Task Force 2

May 17 – Ely and Babbitt firefighters were paged out around 1:30 this afternoon to a roof fire at the Ely-Bloomenson Hospital. The incident was reported around 1:30 when the hospital’s maintenance staff spotted the fire. The hospital’s emergency operations plan was quickly put into action, resulting in the evacuation of non-critical employees. Essential operations remained intact during the incident and no patients at the hospital and adjacent skilled nursing facility were evacuated. Ely firefighters confined the fire to an area around an auxiliary generator exhaust stack, Sixteen Ely firefighters responded with a ladder truck, engine, and a rapid response engine. The Babbitt Fire Department was cancelled while enroute. The cause of the fire was linked to insulation around the generator stack. The auxiliary generator was undergoing a routine test just before the fire was discovered.

May 17 – Three Iron Range fire departments (Fayal, Eveleth, Gilbert) responded to a house fire tonight in Fayal Township. The fire was reported around 8:00 P.M. in the 4400 block of Woodland Boulevard West. Firefighters quickly contained the fire to a second floor bedroom. No injuries were reported. The cause is under investigation.

May 14 – Hibbing firefighter/paramedics had a rather unique rescue this morning. The incident, reported around 7:40, was in the 100 block of 4th Street in the Kitzville area. A deflated weather balloon was discovered in a tree. Fire crews quickly retrieved the balloon, along with the attached equipment. The balloon popped about a week ago and had been reported as missing.

May 4 – Four firefighting organizations (Hibbing, Silica, Minnesota DNR) were involved in fighting a large wildland fire this afternoon south of Hibbing The fire was reported around 2:30 P.M. on the South Butler Road. About 50 acres were involved. No injuries were reported. The cause is under investigation.

May 3 – Firefighters on the eastern side of the Mesabi Iron Range were kept busy tonight with two structure fires within half an hour of each other. The first was a garage fire reported around 7:05 P.M. on Highway 100 in Aurora. The Aurora, Hoyt Lakes, and Lakeland fire departments responded. The garage and several vehicles were extensively damaged. Then, around 7:20 P.M. a house fire was reported in the 5400 block of Poplar Street in Aurora. The Aurora, Palo, and City of Biwabik fire departments responded, along with the Hoyt Lakes Ambulance. Arriving crews found flames in the basement with the fire extending to the outside of the house. The fire was quickly knocked down. No injuries were reported at either blaze. The Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating both fires.

April 30 – A garage and two vehicle parked nearby were destroyed yesterday afternoon as the result of a fire on Highway 1 near the Ely Airport. The fire was reported around 4:45 P.M. Morse-Fall Lake and Babbitt firefighters responded to the call. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s Office.