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Zerkel, Minnesota

10 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Rice Township. It lies in ZIP code area 56621. The Survey maps it on the Zerkel quadrangle.

Zerkel within Clearwater County

Topographic sheets covering this place

5 surveys from 10 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

81 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 81 fires within 5 miles of Zerkel between 1992 and 2020, burning about 361 acres in total. 1 started naturally. 37 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Arson/incendiarism37
Debris and open burning29
Equipment and vehicle use4
Missing data/not specified/undetermined4
Recreation and ceremony4
Smoking1
Misuse of fire by a minor1
Natural1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
24 September 1992Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresMinnesota Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
23 September 2020Debris and open burningunder an acreMinnesota Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
23 September 2012Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMinnesota Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
1 September 2003Arson/incendiarismunder an acreMinnesota Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
27 August 2008Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreMinnesota Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
4 June 2020Debris and open burningunder an acreMinnesota Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
9 May 2013Debris and open burning1.0 acresMinnesota Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
9 May 1994Arson/incendiarism17 acresMinnesota Agencynot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Clearwater County

Mines and quarries near this place

1 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 1 working within 5 miles of Zerkel: 1 producer. All of them still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Mathison PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Every working recorded in Clearwater County

Storms near this place

39 since 1998

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Zerkel in 39 storm reports between 1998 and 2025: 25 hail, 8 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado, 2 flash flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
July 2013Tornado (EF2)Zerkel$750,000This tornado began in Mahnomen County, just southeast of Mahnomen, at 12:50 am CST. The total tornado track was about 21 miles. The tornado damaged structures at three locations along the route with long tracks of tree and crop damage. Peak winds were estimated at 115 mph.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindZerkel$700,000Ground survey and high resolution satellite confirmed a long swath of widespread destructive straight-line winds estimated between 80 and 90 mph starting across south central Clearwater County north of Highway 200 and south of Highway 2. The swath was 8 miles at its widest and easternmost point in Clearwater County. This surge of straight-line winds continued east into southern Beltrami and northern Hubbard counties where more significant winds and impacts were observed around Bemidji. The 30 mile long swath started in Clearwater County and ended near the southeastern Beltrami county line. There was approximately 60,388 acres of Clearwater County impacted with widespread tree damage within this single swath.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindZerkel-High resolution satellite imagery reveals numerous swaths of significant tree damage in portions of southern Clearwater County MN. This includes one noteworthy area of widespread tree destruction near Long Lost Lake, particularly south and east of the lake. Maximum wind estimated from numerous trees snapped at the trunk blown down in a unidirectional and divergent pattern indicative of destructive straight line winds around 100 mph.
May 2023HailZerkel-Report of quarter sized hail relayed via Facebook.
June 2022Thunderstorm WindZerkel-Several pine and poplar trees were blown down along MN200. Time was estimated based on radar.
August 2020HailZerkel-The hail fell along highway 113.
July 2019Thunderstorm WindZerkel-Large tree branches were blown down.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindZerkel-A few large tree branches were blown down at a campground.
July 2012Thunderstorm WindZerkel-Multiple five to six inch diameter trees were blown down across highway 92 two miles southwest of Lake Minerva.
May 2011HailZerkel-The hail fell about eight miles south of Bagley.
June 2010Thunderstorm WindZerkel-Strong winds gusted for 3 to 5 minutes and knocked down several large trees near Lower Rice Lake and the surrounding Rice Lake community. Heavy rains accompanied the winds.
June 2010Tornado (EF1)Zerkel-This tornado tracked nearly due north for about 3 miles. The tornado knocked down numerous large tree limbs and uprooted or snapped off several trees. Some shingles, gutters, and trim pieces were torn off of a house. Peak winds were estimated at 95 mph.
May 2008HailZerkel-The hail fell along the Becker and Clearwater County line and highway 113.
May 2008HailZerkel-Hail covered the ground.
June 2007Thunderstorm WindZerkel-Several large trees were blown down.
June 2002Flash FloodZerkel-Water covered highway 200.
June 2002LightningZerkel-Damage to a home was reported from a lightning strike.
June 1998Flash FloodZerkel-A portion of highway 200 was under water from the heavy rain.
September 2018HailZerkel-no account filed
September 2018HailZerkel-no account filed
September 2018HailZerkel-no account filed
June 2017HailZerkel-no account filed
June 2016HailZerkel-no account filed
May 2008HailZerkel-no account filed
May 2007HailZerkel-no account filed
April 2004HailZerkel-no account filed
April 2004HailZerkel-no account filed
July 2003HailZerkel-no account filed
July 2003HailZerkel-no account filed
June 2002HailZerkel-no account filed
August 2002HailZerkel-no account filed
August 2000HailZerkel-no account filed
August 2000HailZerkel-no account filed
August 2000HailZerkel-no account filed
July 2000HailZerkel-no account filed
June 1999HailZerkel-no account filed
June 1999HailZerkel-no account filed
May 1998HailZerkel-no account filed
July 1998Tornado (F0)Zerkel-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Clearwater County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Minerva4.0 miles10
Ponsford Landing4.1 miles10
Bush Landing5.1 miles10
Big Bear Landing5.4 miles10
Mallard (historical)6.1 miles10
Bonga Landing7.0 miles10
Rice Lake8.7 miles9
Vern8.9 miles9

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 654436. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.