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Lorie Shaull/KAXEThe size of the fires, weather conditions and remote location create a complex, long-term situation. Fires aren't expected to be fully out until it snows. -
Contributed/Sora Shimazaki via PexelsFor those already in poverty or who disproportionately find themselves ensnared in the criminal justice system, the costs of bail, representation, probation or parole, fines, commissary and communication add up . -
A 2025 inspection found the company failed to maintain equipment that monitored and reduced air pollution. -
Contributed/Bemidji PDBemidji Police Chief Mike Mastin says the Minnesota State Patrol is handling the ongoing investigation. -
Plus: the candidate filing period for non-primary elections opened July 14, 2026; and the Grand Rapids Area Library recently made a $30,000 fundraising goal. -
Lorie Shaull/KAXEExtreme fire conditions caused some of the 17 wildfires burning in the Superior National Forest to rapidly spread July 13-14, 2026. -
Lorie Shaull/Special to KAXEThe library matched the anonymous matching donation for $30,000 it received in June 2026. A larger fundraising goal is aimed at increasing public hours in 2027. -
Contributed/University of Wisconsin-Madison Space Science and Engineering CenterDue to smoke from Boundary Waters wildfires, the MPCA issued air quality alerts for large parts of Minnesota. The alert lasts until at least Friday, July 16, 2026. -
And: An Aitkin peat processor fined for air pollution control violations.
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Contributed/National Weather Service Forecast Office DuluthWhile it is expected to cool off slightly on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, temperatures will stay high enough that additional heat advisories may be put in place.
Chelsey Perkins became the News Director in early 2023 and was tasked with building a new local newsroom at the station. She is based in Brainerd and leads a team of two reporters covering communities across Northern Minnesota from the KAXE studio in Grand Rapids and the KBXE studio in Bemidji.
Megan Buffington joined the KAXE newsroom in 2024 after graduating from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Originally from Pequot Lakes, she is passionate about educating and empowering communities through local reporting.
Larissa Donovan has been in the Bemidji area's local news scene since 2016, joining the KAXE newsroom in 2023 after several years as the News Director for the stations of Paul Bunyan Broadcasting.
