UP Wildfire - Duck Lake Fire

UPDATE: Since I posted the information below, more keeps coming in. 

 If you are interested in keeping up to date with the Duck Lake Wildfire,

click on this site 1450 WNBY of Newberry or go to the site of 

Michigan's Department of Natural Resources.

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan has been dealing with wildfires. The wildfire alert season was just about to come to an end when a lightning strike set off a blaze.  The Michigan DNR estimates the fire's size at 21,694 acres. I found the below report at radio station 1450 WNBY of Newberry's Facebook page. They have been doing an excellent job of keeping the public informed of the situation.

The south end of the fire is 14 miles north of Newberry and 7 miles west from Tahquamenon Falls State park campgrounds. A long and narrow fire, it stretches 11 miles to the north to Lake Superior. There are currently 40 miles of fire line. Of that fire line, 6 miles is Lake Superior shoreline, 13 miles is completed line (includes County Road 500), and 21 miles is uncontained fire line. Access remains very difficult with few roads.
The latest estimate is that there are 134 properties within the perimeter of the fire, of which 99 have been inspected to this point. Of the 99 properties inspected, 39 properties have suffered losses. On the 39 properties that suffered losses, 97 structures were lost. The structure losses breakdown as follows:


34 homes/cabins
22 garages
22 sheds/outbuildings
17 campers
1 store
1 motel

There have been times that we can smell the smoke. This past Friday night the sky was hazy with smoke and the evening sunset filtered through, changing the colors of the sky at different levels. On Saturday we went for a ride in our truck- about an hour and 15 minutes - to check on the cabin of friends of ours. They were at their cabin, and they felt confident that the fire was on its way to the west and north, yet the fire started 2-3 miles away from them. They were very fortunate. Others were not as you can see from the above statistics. Below are some pictures I took in the area and of the smoke that lingered in the air.

During the first half of our visit with our friends at their cabin

we didn't smell much smoke at all. But suddenly the wind changed 

and smoke hovered on the air in the stillness of the woods.

We thank all of you who have made contact with us, concerned for our safety.

This fire has been the talk of the UP, and many locals were/are nervous. 

The fire is 45% contained as of our most recent news report. 

We are safe, but please continue to pray for those who have lost, 

and those that continue to fight the fire.