DNR bills central Minnesota woman nearly $150,000 for costs of fighting wildfire
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The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources wants a Morrison County woman to reimburse the agency for nearly $150,000 it spent last spring fighting a wildfire, which she failed to report.
The DNR filed a lawsuit last week in Morrison County District Court against Elizabeth Young, 49, of Pierz.
The agency wants the court to hold Young liable for the costs it incurred combating the grass fire that started on property owned by her husband in April 2025.
The fire burned more than 2,000 acres and took five days to contain. No one was injured, but the fire destroyed two outbuildings.
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According to the civil complaint, Young told a DNR conservation officer that she arrived home around 7:30 p.m. on April 16 and saw the fire burning on their property.
Young told the officer she and her stepson tried to extinguish the fire and keep it away from the house. After a couple of hours, they went back into the house but did not call 911, the complaint states.
A passerby called the Morrison County Sheriff’s Office to report the fire at about 9 p.m.
The following day, the sheriff’s office alerted area residents of a “running swamp fire” that was possibly endangering buildings in Hillman Township and urging them to use caution.
The DNR deployed more than 70 firefighters and numerous firefighting vehicles, helicopters and air tankers to fight the fire. The complaint states that the DNR sent Young an invoice for $148,589 in firefighting costs last August, which she did not pay.
DNR investigators determined the fire was caused by someone burning garbage in a fire pit on the property.
Minnesota’s Wildfire Act prohibits open burning of garbage and other materials. Anyone who violates the law is liable for all expenses incurred in fighting, extinguishing or preventing the spread of the fire.
In May, the DNR cited Young for failure to report the fire, which is a misdemeanor. She paid a $135 fine.
In an email to MPR News, Young said she did not authorize or start the fire on her property. She said she saw fires burning behind both her and her neighbor’s property when she arrived home.
Young said she did not call 911 because her priority was keeping the fire from reaching her home.
After an hour and a half, Young said she and her son brought the fire near her house under control. She said they returned around 9:15 p.m. to call 911, but a police officer on the road informed them the fire department was en route.
“By the time we were able to attempt a call, emergency personnel were already present on the scene,” Young wrote.
Young said at about 10:45 p.m., a firefighter told her the crews would be leaving, and the DNR would continue monitoring and managing the fire. Hours later, the Morrison County Sheriff’s Office alerted the public of the spreading swamp fire, which Young said was several miles from her home.
