Historic ski lodge burns to the ground on North Shore of Lake Superior

A fire has destroyed a historic ski lodge on Minnesota’s North Shore of Lake Superior.

The Lutsen Lodge burned down early Tuesday. The Star Tribune reports that authorities were alerted to the blaze just before 12:30 a.m.

The lodge is about 90 miles north of Duluth. Lutsen has operated since 1885 and bills itself as the oldest resort in Minnesota.

In a social media post, the resort said the building was a total loss.

KARE-TV reports no guests were in the lodge at the time and all staff escaped the blaze. Resort General Manager Edward Vanegas told the media outlet that flames were jumping out of the lodge’s second-story windows by the time he arrived.

Dick Nelson, whose great-grandfather built the resort, told the Star Tribune it’s “devastating for the community.”

“It was a fantastic lodge, solid wood,” Nelson told the newspaper. “But you don’t build things like that anymore.”

Other fires reportedly damaged the lodge in 1949 and 1951. 

“The amazing memories made here are in our hearts as we begin the heavy weighted process to rebuilt back better,” the resort said in a Facebook post.

MPR News reports the State Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating.