Rain helping firefighters control a wildfire in the U.P.

NEWBERRY, Mich. (AP) - Rain is lending a hand to crew members who are battling a wildfire that has consumed 31.6 square miles of forest in the eastern port of Michigan's sparsely populated Upper Peninsula.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources said Sunday that the fire near Newberry is about 47 percent contained.

The DNR says it now estimates the fire has covered 20,255 acres, down slightly from Saturday's figure. Spokesman Dean Wilson says that's based on more accurate measurements.

Wilson says rain falling Sunday is helping efforts to control the Duck Lake Fire. It's along a stretch of forest touching Lake Superior, about 75 miles northeast of the Mackinac Bridge.

Fewer than 100 people have been evacuated and about six structures destroyed. No one is reported hurt.