GREAT FALLS — A wildland fire that sparked early Sunday east of Browning has now burned more than 25,000 acres and destroyed at least one structure.
There have been no injuries reported.
The fire started about a mile east of Blackfeet Community College, and powerful winds fueled the fire's spread northeast toward the community of Blackfoot.
Authorities ordered residents of the Blackfoot area to evacuate.
An emergency shelter has been set up at Browning Middle School.
The roaring winds produced gusts of more than 80 mph in Glacier County throughout the day.
Blackfeet Incident Command said on Sunday evening that the fire has moved eastward and is continuing to burn in the farmland north of Meriwether.
Tribal officials have declared a formal emergency.
"Due to the Grass Fire & High Winds, I, Timothy F. Davis, Chairman of the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council, by virtue of the authority granted to me in Resolution 309-2009, hereby declare an emergency on the Blackfeet Reservation effectively immediately."
