UPDATE: I29 Travel Alert Lifted; Fire Officials Stress Caution

UPDATE: Part of I-29 was shut down because of large grass fires near Grand Forks.
The travel advisory has been lifted but a travel alert is still in effect.

The windy conditions didn’t make it easy for firefighters today. The initial fire started from a chain dragging from a semi-truck that sparked flames.

“If I lost it I would be at a total loss,” says Shay Lewis who lives in Manvel near where the fire broke out.

Shay Lewis’s house has been standing for at least 55 years and was just yards away from being destroyed.

“As I was coming around this bend, it had started up again,” Lewis says.

When she found out about the fire, her first reaction wasn’t to run away, it was to run home.

“I’ve got two dogs, I have two cats, I mean this is my pride,” says Lewis.

Authorities responded around 1 p.m. Wednesday afternoon and worked for the rest of the day, putting out hot spots near I-29.

“The farther south I came it just seemed like it was burning more and more through the south. We got on scene and I immediately started calling for mutual aid from our rural fire departments around the area,” says Manvel Fire Chief Steven Schumer.

The interstate is reopened but conditions are still dangerous.

“Right now it’s very dangerous right now with these winds especially for the high-profile vehicles,” Schumer says.

But after hours of work crews were able to successfully put out all flames and save several homes like Lewis’s.

“I would do anything in my power to save this house if I was the only one standing,” says Lewis.

There was an accident on I-29 due to the fire. Eight people were taken to Altru hospital. Seven patients have been admitted and one patient has been discharged.

Because we are still under a red flag warning, officials want to remind you that burning of any kind is prohibited.

ORIGINAL STORY: A large grass fire forced authorities to close I-29 between Grand Forks and Manvel, and from Drayton north to the border with Canada.

Officials say the fire started when a chain being dragged under a semi caused sparks.

Visibility from the fire has dropped to zero at times in the area and has already caused a number of accidents.  Altru Hospital in Grand Forks accepted 8 patients from a multi-vehicle accident.

Officials are still on the scene, monitoring hotspots.  They expect to remain there into the evening.