Month: April 2022

The Tuesday topic for Severe Weather Awareness Week is Severe Weather, Thunderstorms, Lightning, and Hail with Crookston Firefighter Jim Perreault. Perreault gave an overview of facts and the safety precautions everyone should practice in these severe weather conditions.

Thunderstorms are usually formed in warm, humid conditions that create heavy rainfall, hail, and high winds for short periods of time. The winds can reach anywhere from 60 mph to upwards of 100 mph. Storms affect small areas and are typically less than 15 miles in diameter and last approximately 30 minutes but can also last for hours. Storms can also form in clusters, lined formations, or can be a solitary storm that can have varying effects.

Hail can also be a part of thunderstorms and come in many different sizes, ranging from as small as peas to as large as baseballs or even bigger. Perreault highly advises that people take shelter when hail begins, especially if larger sizes fall from the sky. “Larger stones like that have dropped faster than 100 mph, so taking shelter when and if a thunderstorm is around is key to avoid serious injury or death,” Perreault explained. Hail is formed when strong updrafts and air currents carry water droplets up into the clouds, where they freeze, and gravity causes them to fall back down. Hail can form in thunderstorms, but that is not always the case and can be a part of normal, calmer storms. The Fire Department and National Weather Service recommend that if there is a warning or watch of hail to take precautions and find shelter as quickly as possible.

During a thunderstorm, there is always some form of lightning being created in the sky. Lightning can strike as far as 15 miles out from the center of a thunderstorm and be as long as 5 miles in length. So you are not safe even if you are on the outskirts of the storm, as lightning can strike anywhere in it. If you can hear thunder, then lightning can strike you. The Fire Department and National Weather Service recommend that if you are outside and hear thunder to move to a safe shelter immediately, such as a building or an enclosed metal-top vehicle with the windows up, and to stay in the shelter for at least 30 minutes after the last thunderclap you hear. If you cannot find shelter, avoid tall trees, hilltops, and open fields. Don’t use ungrounded sheds or flimsy structures as shelters as they could get blown over and put you in even more danger. If you are in water, such as in an outdoor swimming pool or out on a boat on the lakes, get to shore immediately as the water will conduct the electricity and spread it out over the water.

Perreault then went into the difference between the terms the National Weather Service will give out during a Severe Thunderstorm. “A Thunderstorm watch means that the conditions are favorable for a thunderstorm to be produced, so staying alert and informed is key if you hear that.” Perreault reported, “A Thunderstorm Warning is that something of a thunderstorm has been seen or reported to the NWS, so something is already brewed overhead.”

The post SEVERE WEATHER AWARENESS WEEK – TUESDAY: THUNDERSTORMS, HAIL, AND LIGHTNING appeared first on KROX.

The Tuesday topic for Severe Weather Awareness Week is Severe Weather, Thunderstorms, Lightning, and Hail with Crookston Firefighter Jim Perreault. Perreault gave an overview of facts and the safety precautions everyone should practice in these severe weather conditions.

Thunderstorms are usually formed in warm, humid conditions that create heavy rainfall, hail, and high winds for short periods of time. The winds can reach anywhere from 60 mph to upwards of 100 mph. Storms affect small areas and are typically less than 15 miles in diameter and last approximately 30 minutes but can also last for hours. Storms can also form in clusters, lined formations, or can be a solitary storm that can have varying effects.

Hail can also be a part of thunderstorms and come in many different sizes, ranging from as small as peas to as large as baseballs or even bigger. Perreault highly advises that people take shelter when hail begins, especially if larger sizes fall from the sky. “Larger stones like that have dropped faster than 100 mph, so taking shelter when and if a thunderstorm is around is key to avoid serious injury or death,” Perreault explained. Hail is formed when strong updrafts and air currents carry water droplets up into the clouds, where they freeze, and gravity causes them to fall back down. Hail can form in thunderstorms, but that is not always the case and can be a part of normal, calmer storms. The Fire Department and National Weather Service recommend that if there is a warning or watch of hail to take precautions and find shelter as quickly as possible.

During a thunderstorm, there is always some form of lightning being created in the sky. Lightning can strike as far as 15 miles out from the center of a thunderstorm and be as long as 5 miles in length. So you are not safe even if you are on the outskirts of the storm, as lightning can strike anywhere in it. If you can hear thunder, then lightning can strike you. The Fire Department and National Weather Service recommend that if you are outside and hear thunder to move to a safe shelter immediately, such as a building or an enclosed metal-top vehicle with the windows up, and to stay in the shelter for at least 30 minutes after the last thunderclap you hear. If you cannot find shelter, avoid tall trees, hilltops, and open fields. Don’t use ungrounded sheds or flimsy structures as shelters as they could get blown over and put you in even more danger. If you are in water, such as in an outdoor swimming pool or out on a boat on the lakes, get to shore immediately as the water will conduct the electricity and spread it out over the water.

Perreault then went into the difference between the terms the National Weather Service will give out during a Severe Thunderstorm. “A Thunderstorm watch means that the conditions are favorable for a thunderstorm to be produced, so staying alert and informed is key if you hear that.” Perreault reported, “A Thunderstorm Warning is that something of a thunderstorm has been seen or reported to the NWS, so something is already brewed overhead.”

The post SEVERE WEATHER AWARENESS WEEK – TUESDAY: THUNDERSTORMS, HAIL, AND LIGHTNING appeared first on KROX.

Each spring, columns of smoke can be seen across the landscape in northwest Minnesota. These smoke columns result from landowners burning drainage ditches, farmers and ranchers burning agricultural stubble, pastures, and piles of brush and trees. Another originator of these spring “smokes” across the landscape is the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The carefully planned prescribed burns conducted on state and federal lands are needed to maintain critical habitats for both game and non-game species found in northwest Minnesota.

The historic year of wildfires across northwest Minnesota, in the spring and summer of 2021, served to increase the emphasis of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducting prescribed fires in an effort to keep the accumulation of grass, brush, and trees down to a manageable level across the landscape. Land managers and firefighters use prescribed fire as a fuel reduction tool. Wildland firefighters often reference this as “We combat bad fire (wildfire) with good fire (prescribed burns).”

On the other side of the prescribed fire management tool are the species that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service manages their lands for. Fire removes dry, dead plant matter that has built up over the years, opening up space for new plant growth and providing better cover for wildlife. The burning also recycles essential nutrients that are locked up in dead plant matter, returning them to the soil where growing plants can use them. At the 23,000-acre Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge, located in northern Polk County, some of the target species are ground-nesting grassland birds, such as ducks, prairie chickens, upland sandpipers, bobolinks, and meadowlarks. All of these birds require a different grass structure (height and thickness) and varying amounts of “thatch” layers (a buildup of previous years’ grasses) to build their nests. Due to the mosaic of grasslands that the Refuge’s diverse bird community requires, the Refuge staff utilizes various types of land management tools, including haying some areas to create short grasses, burning to remove thatch layers, and making short grass during nesting season, and grazing to achieve similar results. Another benefit of conducting prescribed fires is to set back woody vegetation (willow, aspen) that has encroached upon open grassland areas.

In the spring of 2022, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife and other partners will be conducting prescribed burns across northwest Minnesota. For more information about prescribed fire activities on Rydell or Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge, contact Eric Mark, Fire Management Specialist, at 701-425-9080 or eric_mark@fws.gov.

For more information, please contact:

Eric Mark, Rydell, and Glacial Ridge NWR Fire Management Specialist

701-425-9080 / eric_mark@fws.gov

The post PRESCRIBED BURNING AT RYDELL AND GLACIAL RIDGE NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGES appeared first on KROX.

Each spring, columns of smoke can be seen across the landscape in northwest Minnesota. These smoke columns result from landowners burning drainage ditches, farmers and ranchers burning agricultural stubble, pastures, and piles of brush and trees. Another originator of these spring “smokes” across the landscape is the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The carefully planned prescribed burns conducted on state and federal lands are needed to maintain critical habitats for both game and non-game species found in northwest Minnesota.

The historic year of wildfires across northwest Minnesota, in the spring and summer of 2021, served to increase the emphasis of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducting prescribed fires in an effort to keep the accumulation of grass, brush, and trees down to a manageable level across the landscape. Land managers and firefighters use prescribed fire as a fuel reduction tool. Wildland firefighters often reference this as “We combat bad fire (wildfire) with good fire (prescribed burns).”

On the other side of the prescribed fire management tool are the species that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service manages their lands for. Fire removes dry, dead plant matter that has built up over the years, opening up space for new plant growth and providing better cover for wildlife. The burning also recycles essential nutrients that are locked up in dead plant matter, returning them to the soil where growing plants can use them. At the 23,000-acre Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge, located in northern Polk County, some of the target species are ground-nesting grassland birds, such as ducks, prairie chickens, upland sandpipers, bobolinks, and meadowlarks. All of these birds require a different grass structure (height and thickness) and varying amounts of “thatch” layers (a buildup of previous years’ grasses) to build their nests. Due to the mosaic of grasslands that the Refuge’s diverse bird community requires, the Refuge staff utilizes various types of land management tools, including haying some areas to create short grasses, burning to remove thatch layers, and making short grass during nesting season, and grazing to achieve similar results. Another benefit of conducting prescribed fires is to set back woody vegetation (willow, aspen) that has encroached upon open grassland areas.

In the spring of 2022, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife and other partners will be conducting prescribed burns across northwest Minnesota. For more information about prescribed fire activities on Rydell or Glacial Ridge National Wildlife Refuge, contact Eric Mark, Fire Management Specialist, at 701-425-9080 or eric_mark@fws.gov.

For more information, please contact:

Eric Mark, Rydell, and Glacial Ridge NWR Fire Management Specialist

701-425-9080 / eric_mark@fws.gov

The post PRESCRIBED BURNING AT RYDELL AND GLACIAL RIDGE NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGES appeared first on KROX.

The Grand Forks Police Department conducted Alcohol Compliance checks, with the assistance of area youths, on Friday, April 1. A total of 20 businesses were checked. Out of the 20 checked, four businesses failed. The businesses that failed were: Brick & Barley, Sledsters, The Bun, and The Ground Round. Normally the Grand Forks Police Department conducts multiple Alcohol Compliance checks each year, but in recent years, checks weren’t conducted due to COVID-19 concerns. This was the first compliance check since 2020, but they anticipate resuming this activity moving forward.

The Grand Forks Police Department uses youth from the community who are under the age of 21. The compliance checks are conducted by having a youth enter an alcohol establishment under the supervision of a police officer and in accordance with Grand Forks City Ordinance 21-0228. The underage youth will attempt to purchase alcohol and will in no way attempt to conceal their age. If a sale is refused, the business “passes” the check. If a sale is completed, it is observed by the officer, and appropriate enforcement action is taken.

All businesses are later advised that they were involved in a compliance check and its results.

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