I'm writing these words at noon on Wendsday, May  19 as four tractor- plows, nine off road fire engines, three fireline skidders and a U.S. Forest Service Task Force (one bulldozer with three fire engines) and a growing number of wildland and local firefighters sweat it out on firelines this sunny Michigan day. A wildfire - now named  the Meridian Boundary Fire - is raging in Michigan's Crawford County in South Branch Township near the intersection of M-18 and M-72. The fast moving flame front is being fought by crews from the U.S. Forest Service, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment and local fire departments.  At  this moment the blaze has swept over 7,520 acres and evacuations continue.  Residences have been confirmed lost as the fire burns mostly through jack pines. (Building in woods without a defensible open space has extreme risk when fires rage)  The blaze was first spotted at 1:30 pm yesterday. The cause: Burning of debris.  The point of this blog post: Caution and fire weather awarness is a must when you burn--even if you have a permit.  A State of Emergency has now been declared in Crawford County and M-18 is closed from M-72 to the Roscommon line. With winds shifting today to the northwest there is fear the fire may jump over and escape the southern containment lines. If that happens the north side of the Village of Roscommon is threatened.  Stay tuned.