Hazy Skies--UPDATED

UPDATES:

GRAYLING, Mich. --

Crews put out one of two forest fires in dry, windy northern Michigan, both of which have forced more than 200 people to leave their homes.

The state Department of Natural Resources and Environment said one fire has burned about 7,500 acres.

The fire was only 20 percent contained as of 9 a.m. Wednesday.

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The second fire was in Kalkaska County, within the Camp Grayling National Guard base.

Military personnel helped DNRE crews fight the 1,100-acre fire -- it was extinguished early Wednesday morning.

The forest service said the fire was fairly large and a Type-1 helicopter was sent in to drop about 1,500 gallons of water in an effort to combat the blaze.

No Injuries have been reported.

The sky is very hazy and grey. It should be blue. The sun is foggy and bright red even though it is high in the sky still. It should be clear and bright and should not be red like a setting sun until a couple hours. Why is this? Because there is two huge forest fires to the east of us. One is near my grandparent's house but it is blowing in the other direction. The other fire is near one of my friend's house but I believe it is also blowing in the opposite direction. The head of the fire is more than a mile wide.

Here is some of what we read about the fire:

"Two large wildfires are forcing evacuations in Crawford and Kalkaska counties as fire crews are using bulldozers and water to contain the flames."

"A large forest fire fueled by gusting winds is raging through a heavily forested area of southern Crawford County in northern Michigan and hundreds of homes are in jeopardy, according to officials with the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office and American Red Cross."

"“Conditions are very windy up here and it’s hampering firefighters and making the task even more daunting,” said Jerry DeRousse, a public information officer for the American Red Cross. He said that 15 knot winds were coming out of the west with gusts up to 30 m.p.h.

He said the area that is burning is heavily forested with evergreen trees, red and white pines and hardwood trees.

“The county, state and local guys are doing a fabulous job of evacuating the area and containing the fire,” said DeRousse, a Grayling resident, who has been with the Red Cross for seven years. “They’re using helicopters to drop water on the fire.”

"Another smaller fire has reportedly burned up to 100 acres in the area of Camp Grayling."

We read somewhere else that the one in the Roscommon County area has burnt 3,000 acres so far and is not under control yet. It also crossed a highway/road too.

You can go here to see a map with the fire on it: Map of Michigan Forest Fire You will have to scroll down below the map and click on "Fire" by the map controls.

Please pray for all the people involved and for the ones who lost their homes.

I will post updates below:

photo curtsy of upnorthlive.com

UPDATE AT 8:32 P.M: We're told the wildfire has now spread to more than 5,000 acres. Witnesses say more than 20 homes have been destroyed.