The Duck Lake Fire occurred north of the Village of Newberry in

Luce Luce may refer to: People * Luce (name), as a given name and a surname * Luce (singer) Places * Luče, a town in Slovenia * Luce, Minnesota, an unincorporated community * Luce Bay, a large Bay in Wigtownshire in southern Scotland * Luce Co ...

County,

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

in the eastern half of the

Upper Peninsula of Michigan The Upper Peninsula of Michigan – also known as Upper Michigan or colloquially the U.P. – is the northern and more elevated of the two major landmasses that make up the U.S. state of Michigan; it is separated from the Lower Peninsula by t ...

. The fire started with a

lightning strike A lightning strike or lightning bolt is an electric discharge between the atmosphere and the ground. Most originate in a cumulonimbus cloud and terminate on the ground, called cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning. A less common type of strike, ground- ...

on Wednesday, May 23, 2012 near Duck Lake. The Duck Lake Fire was reported 100% contained by the Michigan DNR on 15 June 2012 with 21,135 acres burned. The Duck Lake Fire was reported as the third worst fire in Michigan since 1881.The ''Christian Science Monitor'' listed the 1,000,000-acre Thumb fire of 1881 and the 25,000-acre Mio fire of 1980 surpassing Duck Lake which replaced the 18,000-acre Sleeper Lakes Fire of 2007 as third. However they missed the 72,000-acre Seney Fire of 1976, the 300,000-acre Metz Fire of 1908, the 228,00-acre Ontonagon Fire of 1896, the 64,000-acre Ishpeming fire of 1896 and possibly the 1911 Au Sable-Oscoda Fire. The

Great Fire of 1871 The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left more than 10 ...

exceeded all of these. It was the second major fire in Luce County within five years. On May 25, 2012,

Governor Rick Snyder Richard Dale Snyder (born August 19, 1958) is an American business executive, venture capitalist, attorney, accountant, and politician who served as the 48th governor of Michigan from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, Snyder prev ...

declared a state of disaster in

and Schoolcraft counties, which included a ban of fireworks and an outdoor burning ban in 49 counties, including all counties located in the Upper Peninsula and much of the northern half of the Lower Peninsula as a result of abnormally dry conditions. The fire caused the closure of

Tahquamenon Falls State Park The Tahquamenon Falls State Park is a state park in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the second largest of Michigan's state parks. Bordering on Lake Superior, most of the park is located within Whitefish Township in Chippewa County, with the ...

during the Memorial Day weekend.

Fire progression

The fire began in the vicinity of Duck Lake, near Falls Road and M-123 and burned towards the north over largely uninhabited

jack pine Jack pine (''Pinus banksiana'') is an eastern North American pine. Its native range in Canada is east of the Rocky Mountains from the Mackenzie River in the Northwest Territories to Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, and the north-central and ...

forest. By 10:00 p.m. on May 24, 2012, the fire had burned over . By 4:00 p.m. the next day, the fire had burned nearly . At that point, the fire affected an area slightly smaller than that of the Sleeper Lakes fire. By May 31, 2012 the most recent GPS size estimate showed the fire had burned . Hundreds of properties had been affected and 132 structures (including 46 homes) were lost. Fire crews made progress with 51% percent containment. Several showers and

thunderstorms A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder. Relatively weak thunderstorms are someti ...

helped during the afternoon and evening. The total cost to date for the wildfire is $450,557. By June 4, the fire was reported as 72 percent contained with no smoke plume and no significant activity since May 28. Damage assessments found 136 structures lost: 49 homes/cabins (including a store and a motel), 23 garages, 38 sheds or outbuildings and 26 campers on 21,135 burnt acres. By June 15, 2012, the fire was 100% contained after almost 43 miles of fire line were built. 300 people were involved in the fire response.Duck Lake Fire
Michigan Department of Natural Resources, June 15, 2012

Notes

References

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External links

Satellite imagery and burn severity maps of the Duck Lake Fire Luce County, Michigan Wildfires in Michigan 2012 wildfires in the United States 2012 in Michigan

Fire progression

Notes

See also

References

External links