| July 13, 2021 Scattered showers and thunderstorms expected in eastern Minnesota this evening. Overnight lows in the 50s and 60s statewide. Wednesday brings showers and thunderstorms with severe weather possible in southern Minnesota. Highs in the mid-70s to lower 80s. Find the latest on Updraft. More burning restrictions are in place across northern Minnesota as drought conditions deepen. Fourteen counties in the northern half of the state now have restrictions on campfires, and the DNR will not issue burning permits in those counties. Aircraft continue to drop water as firefighters work to contain the Delta Lake Fire burning in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness about 20 miles east of Ely.
Officials say the hot and dry conditions increase the possibility that fire will grow in the coming days. If you're planning a camping trip soon in northern Minnesota, you might want to check conditions before hitting the road. COVID-19 case counts edge higher, but there’s nothing yet to suggest the state is headed for another major wave. New daily cases are up, but key measures remain at relatively low levels. One area of concern for state officials is the new delta variant of COVID-19. It's becoming more dominant in Minnesota cases. State Health Department infectious disease director Kris Ehresmann told MPR News that over the last four weeks, the delta variant has gone from being less than 1 percent of all variants seen in the state to over 12 percent.
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