Heavy smoke from wildfires blankets the US Midwest and Northeast, prompting evacuations
Willy Vosburgh, owner of Vosburgh's Custom Cabin Rentals on Moose Lake, uses a tow boat to evacuate canoeists from the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness after multiple wildfires burning there prompted its closure and evacuation Tuesday, July 14, 2026 in Ely, Minn. (Anthony Souffle/Minnesota Star Tribune via AP)
Thousands of visitors were told to evacuate a remote Minnesota wilderness area accessible only by boat as wildfires send dangerously heavy smoke over the U.S. Midwest and Northeast this week.
More than 100 wildfires are burning in Canada and winds are carrying the smoke southeast. Warnings about unhealthy air conditions Wednesday extended from Minnesota through Toronto and into New York. Unusually hot summer temperatures were expected, too.