Skip to main content

Controlled MnDOT ditch burn gets out of control

Lead Summary

By Reed Anfinson
Publisher
As farmers near Danvers harvested their crops Oct. 17, they noticed something that was hard to believe considering - a Minnesota Department of Transportation crew started burning a ditch on the south side of U.S. Highway 12.
Swift County was in a severe drought and the National Weather Service had issued multiple Red Flag Warnings for southwestern Minnesota due strong winds and low humidity.
By 8 a.m. Oct, 17, the wind was gusting to 18 mph out of north and by mid-morning it was gusting to 24 mph. In the afternoon, the gusts would reach 26 mph with winds steady at more than 15 mph.
 
For more on this story, subscribe to the Monitor-News and support community journalism.

Sign up for News Alerts

Subscribe to news updates