Federal officials are not second guessing the management of the forest fire that burned more than 140 square miles of Boundary Waters Canoe Area last year. In a series of reports the Forest Service says all regulations were followed. The agency says the fire behaved in ways that were unprecedented for the crews that were fighting it.

Fire crews and a wind switch combined to beat back a raging forest 216-acre fire Thursday that burned to the edge of popular tourist town Ely. Some nervous residents were briefly evacuated, but no injuries were reported and officials say no occupied homes were lost.

Officials Saturday were still fighting two small fires by air and ground in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, as well as a 500-acre blaze burning just across the Canadian border. Canadian crews are attacking a "very active" fire known as Fort Frances No. 59, the Duluth News Tribune reports.

U-S Forestry Officials vastly underestimated the beginnings of a wildfire in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. The Star Tribune reports internal memos show an initial wait-and-see approach set the stage for the blaze to explode into the largest fire the state has seen in almost a hundred years.

Two airplanes that each carry 11,000 gallons of water are joining the fight against the Boundary Waters wildfire. Crews hope they will help bring more of the fire under control. Firefighters are making incremental progress containing the blaze. Officials worry increasing winds this week will only make their efforts harder.

The massive wildfire in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness burned about 95,000 acres. Hundreds of firefighters from the Midwest and Rocky Mountains fought the blaze at a cost of more than $20 million. And now, with winter approaching, we're getting a look at the extent of the devastation the fire left behind.

Forest Service officials tell the Ely Echo more than 100 campsites were damaged by the fire and won't re-open for a few years. The good news -- that's only five percent of the campsites in the BWCAW.

Downed trees and dry tall grass are creating prime conditions for forest fires. The Wisconsin Public Radio reports the DNR is doubling the number of tanker planes in the northwest region.