A wildfire that has shut down the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park tripled in size on Easter during another day of record heat and dry, blustery conditions in western North Dakota.
Meanwhile, crews on Monday fully contained a fire in the area of the park s South Unit that prompted the evacuation of the tourist town of Medora last Thursday.
Crews worked through the night on the North Unit fire dubbed the Horse Pasture Fire trying to get a handle on the blaze that is now 3,000 acres, or more than 4 ½ square miles, according to Beth Hill, acting outreach and education manager for the North Dakota Forest Service.
North Dakota bighorn sheep survey tallies record-setting population
The survey, which is completed by recounting lambs in March, tallied a record 322 bighorn sheep in western North Dakota, surpassing the previous record of 313 bighorns in 2008.
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Herald Staff Report | 11:31 am, Apr. 5, 2021 ×
Bighorn sheep. (Photo/ North Dakota Game and Fish Department)
North Dakota’s bighorn sheep population was up 11% from 2019 and 13% above the five-year average, the Game and Fish Department said Monday in reporting results from its 2020 bighorn sheep survey.
In a news release, the department said the survey, which is completed by recounting lambs in March, tallied a record 322 bighorn sheep in western North Dakota, surpassing the previous record of 313 bighorns in 2008.
Record Count of Bighorn Sheep by Game & Fish newsdakota.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from newsdakota.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
By Doug Barrett
Pic: NDHP
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is warning the state is headed to a “tough fire season.”
Much of the state is in a drought. The National Drought Mitigation Center suggests 47% of the state is in extreme drought and 38% in severe drought status. The fire out by Medora is said to be about 85% contained.
Firefighters are making progress in controlling a large grass fire near Medora, North Dakota as more wildfires have started in other areas in the western part of the state facing high fire danger.
According to the North Dakota Forest Service – as of Sunday – the Medora blaze was 85% contained. It had burned an estimated 2,276 acres of grassland since it started Thursday.
A wildfire that has shut down the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park tripled in size on Easter during another day of record heat and dry, blustery conditions in western North Dakota.
Meanwhile, crews on Monday fully contained a fire in the area of the park s South Unit that prompted the evacuation of the tourist town of Medora last Thursday.
Crews worked through the night on the North Unit fire dubbed the Horse Pasture Fire trying to get a handle on the blaze that is now 3,000 acres, or more than 4 ½ square miles, according to Beth Hill, acting outreach and education manager for the North Dakota Forest Service.