Southern Wildfires

[waltky]

Is fire season in the South...

Southern fires rage with 41.6 million now living in drought
Nov. 10, 2016 — Unseasonably warm dry weather has deepened a drought that's igniting forest fires across the southeastern U.S., forcing people to flee homes in the Appalachian Mountains and blanketing Atlanta in a smoky haze.

Thursday's national drought report shows 41.6 million people in parts of 15 southern states living in drought conditions. The worst drought is in Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee, but extreme drought also is spreading into the western Carolinas, and Kentucky and Tennessee had the most fires. All but two of the 61 active large wildfires nationwide Thursday were in the Southeast, according to the U.S. Forest Service. Nearly a dozen large fires were uncontained, with 14 more breaking out Thursday alone. "Right now we're kind of holding our own," said Jennifer Turner, a spokeswoman for the Kentucky's state Division of Forestry. "We've been able to get control over some of the smaller fires."

A wildfire burns in the North Chickamauga Creek Gorge along the Flipper Bend area of Signal Mountain, Tenn., on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2016. Wildfires burning across the South have created a smoky haze over metro Atlanta and prompted a public health advisory in Kentucky, and the forests are expected to continue burning for days as flaming leaves fall to the ground and spread the flames. Other fires were burning in parts of Alabama, North Carolina and Tennessee.​

Nearly 390 firefighters and support crews and half a dozen water-dumping helicopters were battling 20 fires in Kentucky Thursday that together have burned nearly 20,000 acres, Turner said. Humidity is so low in the normally lush Appalachians that forestry officials are bracing for more. North Carolina's Gov. Pat McCrory declared a state of emergency for a fourth of his state's 100 counties, to help with evacuations and provide more assets to fight the fires. Authorities also made two arson arrests in eastern Kentucky, and citied another man for causing a brush fire while defying a burn ban. Tennessee authorities also reported arrests for arson and burning violations.

Bans on outdoor burning were in effect across the drought zone, and in Alabama, authorities extended that ban throughout the state, where drought is choking 80 percent of the land, drying up streams and lakes and killing plants. Firefighters were battling three active wildfires in Alabama on Thursday, the latest of more than 1,100 fires that have charred nearly 12,000 acres in the last month. Tuscaloosa and Birmingham have both tied or broken records for days without measurable rain; neither has had more than sprinkles since late September. And Noccalula Falls, a popular attraction on Lookout Mountain in northeast Alabama, has been bone dry for weeks. "It's fed by Black Creek and the creek is dry. There's not even a trickle going over the falls," Kaila Fair, manager at the adjoining campground, said Thursday.

[/center]

An aircraft from the US Forestry Service drops fire retardant on a wildfire burning along the Flipper Bend area of Signal Mountain in Hamilton County, Tenn., on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2016. Wildfires burning across the South have created a smoky haze over metro Atlanta and prompted a public health advisory in Kentucky, and the forests are expected to continue burning for days as flaming leaves fall to the ground and spread the flames. Other fires were burning in parts of Alabama, North Carolina and Tennessee.[/center]

In mountainous western North Carolina, people living on five roads near one roaring blaze were advised to leave their homes, and residents of 38 more homes in another part of the state were told to evacuate ahead of a separate wildfire. A large wildfire burning through a rugged and thinly populated part of the north Georgia mountains this week created a smoky haze over Atlanta as winds blew the smoke into the city. Haze also settled over Chattanooga this week. Drought conditions also are persisting in parts of the Florida panhandle and portions of Virginia, , Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Indiana and Missouri, according to Drought Monitor, which is produced by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Wildfires break out in Appalachia amid deepening drought

See also:

The Latest: North Carolina declares wildfire emergency
Nov 10,`16 -- The Latest on wildfires and drought in the southeastern U.S. (all times local):

12 p.m.

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory has declared a state of emergency because of the wildfires in the western part of the state. McCrory issued the declaration late Thursday morning to help the state's efforts in handling more than 20 wildfires. McCrory pointed out that while eastern North Carolina grapples with recovery from the flooding from Hurricane Matthew, the western part of the state has been suffering drought conditions for weeks.

The state of emergency is in effect in 25 western counties. Outdoor burning has been banned in those counties. Some evacuations have been ordered in five counties. A National Guard helicopter and technicians have been deployed to help with any rescues that might be needed. McCrory says the fires are some of the worst in North Carolina in nearly 20 years.

11:25 a.m.

Federal authorities say warmer-than-average temperatures and no rainfall are deepening a drought that's sparking forest fires across the Southeastern U.S., forcing people to evacuate dozens of homes. Thursday's national drought report shows 41.6 million people in parts of 15 southern states now live in drought conditions. The worst is in Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee, but extreme drought also is spreading into western North and South Carolina.

Most of the large fires Thursday are being fought in Tennessee and Kentucky. In the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina, people living on five roads near one roaring blaze were advised to leave their homes, and residents of 38 more homes in another part of the state were told to evacuate ahead of a separate wildfire.

News from The Associated Press

 

[waltky]

Granny knitted a lil' mask fer possum...

As wildfire smoke streams across South, masks urged for some
Nov. 12, 2016 — Wildfires near the Georgia-North Carolina line are spewing smoke so thick that residents are being urged to wear special masks if they must do outdoor activities.

The fires have prompted evacuations in Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee in recent days.

The largest of dozens of ongoing wildfires in the South has now burned 13,300 acres — or more than a third of the vast Cohutta Wilderness area — in the north Georgia mountains just south of the Tennessee line, fire managers said in an update Saturday. It was only 20 percent contained.

People take photos of a wildfire burning near Lake Lure, N.C.​

In Macon County, North Carolina, special health masks were being made available Saturday. Emergency Management Director Warren Cabe said they're distributing N95-rated masks as regular surgical masks don't provide adequate protection from smoke particles.

As wildfire smoke streams across South, masks urged for some

 

[Wyatt earp]

Yeah kinda bad down here

 

[Billy_Bob]

Been a while since you folks saw a La Niña weather pattern..

 

[Wyatt earp]

*shrugs * been down here in SC for 14years never seen anything like this

 

[Billy_Bob]

*shrugs * been down here in SC for 14years never seen anything like this

The last time the south was in a cooling pattern was about 23 years ago.... this is just the beginning. Its only been about three months so far... And just ask those in the north about low humidity winters.. Its gonna get real cold when those arctic fronts shove down to the southern regions.

 

[anotherlife]

Wild fire must suck. Imagine it burns you and you are an animal that doesn't wanna burn. But nature as a whole uses it as a rebirth tool. So strange. Hmmm.

 

[Billy_Bob]

Wild fire must suck. Imagine it burns you and you are an animal that doesn't wanna burn. But nature as a whole uses it as a rebirth tool. So strange. Hmmm.

Eco system reset... Cleans out the weeds and sick vegetation. Gets rid of predatory animals and those outside their boundaries climatically.. And man inhibits this natural cycle allowing the predators and sick vegetation to remain..

 

[strollingbones]

most of western nc is under a drought...the fires are from arson and are growing quickly...reports say the party fire at lake lure doubled in 24 hours....good luck to those near lake lure

 

[Old Rocks]

Weekly Drought Update - 11/08/2016
(link is external)
Percent Area in Continental U.S. (Full Statistics) (link is external)
Week None D0-D4 D1-D4 D2-D4 D3-D4 D4
This Week
11/08/2016 51.09% 48.91% 27.36% 11.38% 4.96% 1.91%
Last Week
11/01/2016 52.28% 47.72% 26.80% 10.95% 4.86% 1.71%
Current Conditions | U.S Drought Portal

Are the fires ground or crown fires? Never saw any pictures that showed a crown fire. If they are ground fires consider yourself lucky. A crown fire consumed 2/3 of my favorite wilderness area last summer. The area is high enough that it will not recover in my lifetime.

 

[Old Rocks]

wildfires and global warming, agu - Bing video
Global warming and fires

 

[waltky]

Arsonist turns out to be wannabe weatherman...

Wannabe weatherman sets fire to gain Facebook views
Tuesday 15th November, 2016 - A wannabe weatherman has been jailed for arson after admitting he started a wildfire to draw attention to his selfie videos on Facebook, police said.

"It's really too bad because he's not a bad kid - he's just misguided," said James Stephens, the police chief in Jenkins, Kentucky, where Johnny Mullins, 21, was arrested on a second-degree arson charge. "He likes to do Facebook videos and have people follow him on his 'weather forecast', so that's pretty much why he did what he did," the chief said. "He enjoyed the attention he got from the Facebook stuff." "He didn't realise how much danger he was putting other people in," Mr Stephens added.

A teenager in Harlan County, Kentucky was also was arrested for arson - and in Tennessee, authorities said that Andrew Scott Lewis was charged with setting fires, vandalism and threatening homes outside Chattanooga. No further arrests were announced over the rest of the suspicious fires, which have been torching forests in and around the southern Appalachian mountains. The relentless drought across much of the South has removed the usual humidity and sucked wells and streams dry, making the woods prone to fire.

Firefighters tackle a blaze in Tennessee woodland​

Tens of thousands of acres have burned, about a dozen of the largest fires remain uncontained and many people had to evacuate their homes ahead of fast-moving flames. Law officers in Georgia's Rabun County suspect that someone started a series of small roadside fires on Wednesday that eventually merged into the much larger blazes firefighters were working to contain over the weekend, said Justin Upchurch, the county's assistant fire chief. The area is less than 50 miles from North Carolina's Nantahala National Forest, where more than 20 wildfires that have burned more than 17,000 acres are all "being investigated for suspected arson", forestry officials announced in a status update. There were 14 other wildfires burning on Cherokee Nation land in North Carolina, all under investigation by local law enforcement.

A fire managers' update noted that the US Bureau of Indian Affairs is seeking information about fires on Indian lands through an arson hotline. The US Forest Service announced on Friday that the entire Cohutta Wilderness, which stretches across the Chattahoochee National Forest in Georgia and the Cherokee National Forest in Tennessee, has been closed to the public due to multiple fires there. States of emergency were declared in some of the affected areas to facilitate state and federal spending on the response. More than 5,000 firefighters and support staff from around the nation have joined the effort, said Shardul Raval, director of fire and aviation management for the southern region of the US Forest Service.

Wannabe weatherman Johnny Mullins jailed for arson after starting wildfire to gain Facebook views - BelfastTelegraph.co.uk

 

[strollingbones]

we have air quality alerts....stay inside if possible...

 

[waltky]

Granny says, "Dat's right - dat's why dey call `em the Smoky Mountains...

Relentless smoke spreads fear at edge of southern wildfires
November 16, 2016 — Thick smoke has settled over a wide area of the southern Appalachians, where dozens of uncontrolled wildfires are burning through decades of leaf litter, making people breathe in tiny bits of the forest with every gulp of air. It's a constant reminder of the threat to many small mountain communities, where relentless drought and now persistent fires and smoke make people feel under siege.

More than 5,000 firefighters and support personnel, including many veterans of wildfires in the arid West, and 24 helicopters are reinforcing local crews in the fire zone, which has spread from northern Georgia and eastern Tennessee into eastern Kentucky, the western Carolinas and parts of surrounding states. There were more than 30 uncontained large fires burning across the southeast, federal officials said in a Wednesday update. Fires across the region have burned a total of 128,000 acres, or about nine times the size of Manhattan. "A lot of the ladies just went to tears and said this happens in other places, it doesn't happen here," pastor Scott Cates said as townspeople donated water, cough drops and other supplies for the firefighters at the Liberty Baptist church in the small community of Tiger, Georgia.

Here, these fires don't sleep. They burn through the night, through the now-desiccated tinder of deciduous forests accustomed to wet, humid summers and autumns. "It doesn't die down after dark," says fire Capt. Ron Thalacker, who came from Carlsbad, New Mexico, and is leading a crew spraying hotspots in Georgia's Rabun County, near the epicenter of the southern fires. Large, wind-driven fires that scorch pine forests in the West often burn in the tree tops and mellow out at night, but these fires are clinging to the ground and actively burning 24 hours a day, said firefighter Chad Cullum of Billings, Montana. Cullum spoke briefly, as flames rolled down a mountainside behind him. Then he ordered everyone to get out. "We need to leave," he said sternly, ushering people to move down a rocky dirt road.

Tim Free, a lifelong resident, broke down with emotion as he described how elderly neighbors are struggling with relentless smoke, so thick it blocks the sun. "Everybody is pulling together," Free said as more donations arrived at the church. "That's where you see your community pull together, and that's what we're fortunate to have here is people who care about people." Inside the church, where several women were assembling care packages, Brittany Keener said "we really need lubricating eye drops!" Anyone living through this smoke needs them, but particularly people working to contain the blazes in the forests, where Keener said a burning ember fell into one firefighter's eye. "Anybody that's outside of their homes is going to have to have something that will basically lubricate their throats -- cough drops, lozenges or even a stick of peppermint," Free said. "Just to get a little lubricant in your eyes is something that's needed daily because of the smoke."

In North Carolina, Randle Montgomery recalled watching television coverage of wildfires in California and considering himself lucky. He never expected a 4,500-acre blaze to threaten Lake Lure, where he works, and Black Mountain, where he's lived for 16 years. "The way this thing takes off, they'll get it contained, and it just depends on the wind, but it's turned so many times on us," said Montgomery, 47. "And it's got everybody pretty much on edge. It's something I've never seen up here before and I hope I never do." Tom Stokesberry, an emergency medical technician from Six Rivers National Forest in California, arrived in north Georgia on Veteran's Day. "The goal is to keep this line intact," Stokesberry said, pointing to a narrow, winding dirt road between a burning mountainside and a pasture that, so far, has been untouched by the fire. Just beyond it is a farmhouse. It wasn't clear whether the property had been evacuated. The smoke is hiding the sun in town, but out at the fire's edge, it appears in the sky, and it is blood red. "We call that the red eye of the dragon," Cullum says.

Relentless smoke spreads fear at edge of southern wildfires

 

[strollingbones]

we now have two...one outside of blowing rock..the other in deep gap....both are expected to be contained

 

[waltky]

'Dollywood' theme park at risk as wildfires rage in southern US...

Three reported dead as wildfires rage in southeastern US
November 29, 2016 - Three people have reportedly died in the US southeast as wildfires bore down Tuesday on a mountainous tourist region home to a theme park founded by country music legend Dolly Parton.

The fires, located in the eastern part of Tennessee, have damaged or destroyed hundreds of structures and caused thousands of evacuations, the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) reported. Not only are the fires threatening Parton's Dollywood, but they have also blazed through parts of the tourist hamlet of Gatlinburg, one of the gateways to the area's Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Officials in Sevier County, in which Gatlinburg and Dollywood are located, told reporters Tuesday that three people had died, according to multiple US media.

The fires have been fanned by high winds and fueled by parched vegetation after the worst drought in nearly a decade. Wind speeds topping 70 miles (110 kilometers) per hour were reported in some parts of the state. Hundreds of firefighters have descended on Gatlinburg and TEMA estimated that more than 14,000 residents and visitors had been evacuated from the city alone. Three people with severe burns and a fourth with burns to the face had been transferred to hospitals, it said, although it was unclear if any of these were among the fatalities. More than 100 structures were damaged in the city, while more than 150 were damaged or destroyed in Sevier County, according to officials cited by CNN.

- Tourist destinations close -

The Great Smoky Mountains, the most visited national park in the United States, said Tuesday it had "closed all facilities in the park due the extensive fire activity and downed trees," and that park headquarters were without power and phone services. Dollywood, located in the town of Pigeon Forge near the national park, suspended operations for Wednesday. A morning assessment revealed no damage to the park itself, although more than a dozen cabins managed by Dollywood were found to be damaged or destroyed, the resort said in a statement. "I have been watching the terrible fires in the Great Smoky Mountains and I am heartbroken. I am praying for all the families affected by the fire and the firefighters who are working so hard to keep everyone safe," Parton, 70, said Tuesday. "It is a blessing that my Dollywood theme park, (Dollywood's) DreamMore Resort and so many businesses in Pigeon Forge have been spared."

Parton's 295-acre (120-hectare) amusement resort is one of the region's most popular draws with rides and musical events that sometimes include appearances by Parton and her family. Vice President-elect Mike Pence said that "our hearts and our prayers go out to the people of Tennessee who are struggling with an extraordinary wildfire." He said Trump spoke with Governor Bill Haslam to express "our concern, and our prayers, and our support." Haslam wrote on Twitter that the state had deployed the National Guard and other resources to help in the effort. The governor was headed to Gatlinburg to meet with state and local fire and public safety officials.

Three reported dead as wildfires rage in southeastern US

 

[waltky]

Fire on the mountains...

Great Smoky Mountains fires leave three dead, 'scene of destruction'
Nov 29 2016 - Local officials said on Tuesday that "the worst is over" for two small Tennessee resort towns in the Great Smoky Mountains where wildfires killed three people, destroyed or damaged more than 100 homes, forced thousands to flee and threatened country music star Dolly Parton's theme park, Dollywood.

The flames, driven to the outskirts of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge overnight by hurricane-force winds and fed by drought-parched brush, forced 14,000 people to flee and sent three to hospitals with severe burns, the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency said. Three people were killed in the wildfires, the agency said, and a total of 14 people injured. No further details were immediately available on the fatalities. While downtown Gatlinburg was untouched by the flames, heavy smoke and an orange sky hung overhead as motorists packed roads in an attempt to leave town. "I can tell you that we've all been overwhelmed at the scene of destruction in the county and primarily in the city of Gatlinburg," Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters told reporters at a press conference.

Gatlinburg Mayor Mike Werner said that about half of the town of some 3,000 people, known as the "gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains," had been affected by the blazes. Gatlinburg Fire Chief Greg Miller said the so-called Chimney Top fire exploded on Monday evening as humidity dropped and wind gusts reached nearly 90 miles per hour. "I can tell you this, whatever we deal with today is not gonna be anything like what we dealt with last night. The worst is definitely over with," Miller said at the news conference. It was not immediately clear how many people were ordered from Pigeon Forge, which includes Dollywood's 150-acre (60.7-hectare) spread of rides and other attractions.

The theme park said it would suspend operations on Wednesday because of the wildfires, and Great Smoky Mountains National Park officials said all of the park's facilities were closed because of extensive fire activity and downed trees. "I have been watching the terrible fires in the Great Smoky Mountains and I am heartbroken," Parton said in a written statement. "My thoughts and prayers are with the great people of Tennessee during these terrible wildfires. Stay safe!" President-elect Donald Trump said in a post on Twitter. Vice President-elect Mike Pence told reporters that Trump had spoken to Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam to express the incoming administration's concern and offer their prayers.

About 12,000 homes and businesses were left without power in the area and some 2,000 people sought refuge in shelters, officials said. Downed power lines and fallen trees sparked several smaller fires, local media reported. Members of the state's National Guard have been called in to assist first responders. Firefighters have battled dozens of wildfires across the U.S. Southeast in recent weeks. "It's the apocalypse on both sides" of the city's center, volunteer Fire Department Lieutenant Bobby Balding told local 9News.

Great Smoky Mountains fires leave three dead, 'scene of destruction'

 

[koshergrl]

Here's the thing...they say there have been more than a thousand wildfires in Tenn this year, and half caused by arson.

But with the Dept. of the Interior...everybody (except them) are arsonists. They don't allow us to maintain our forests, in fact they deliberately block roads and creek beds and leave slash laying around...then whenever a fire gets away they scream "ARSON!" and jail poor ass land owners.

It's a calculated movement on the dept. of interior's part to clear out everybody from the forests. If you refuse to sell out, they'll burn you out. If they can pin the fire on you, then you're going to prison. It's what they do.

Two arrested for arson in Tennessee, at least one ignited wildfire

 

[waltky]

Uncle Ferd won a hula dancin' contest when he went to Dollywood w/ his g/f...

Great Smoky Mountains Fires Leave 'Scene of Destruction'
November 29, 2016 - Officials said on Tuesday that "the worst is over" for two small Tennessee resort towns in the Great Smoky Mountains where wildfires destroyed or damaged some 150 homes and other structures, forced thousands to flee and threatened country music star Dolly Parton's theme park, Dollywood.

The flames, driven to the outskirts of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge overnight by hurricane-force winds and fed by drought-parched brush, forced 14,000 people to flee and sent three to hospitals with severe burns, the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency said. NBC News reported that three people had been killed in the wildfires, citing local officials. Reuters could not immediately confirm that report. While downtown Gatlinburg was untouched by the flames, heavy smoke and an orange sky hung overhead as motorists packed roads in an attempt to leave town. "I can tell you that we've all been overwhelmed at the scene of destruction in the county and primarily in the city of Gatlinburg," Sevier County Mayor Larry Waters told reporters at a press conference.

Gatlinburg Mayor Mike Werner said that about half of the town of some 3,000 people, known as the "gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains," had been affected by the blazes. Gatlinburg Fire Chief Greg Miller said the so-called Chimney Top fire exploded on Monday evening as humidity dropped and wind gusts reached nearly 90 miles per hour. "I can tell you this, whatever we deal with today is not gonna be anything like what we dealt with last night. The worst is definitely over with," Miller said at the news conference.

A wildfire burns on a hillside after a mandatory evacuation was ordered in Gatlinburg, Tennessee​

It was not immediately clear how many people were ordered from Pigeon Forge, which includes Dollywood's 150-acre (60.7-hectare) spread of rides and other attractions. The theme park said it would suspend operations on Wednesday because of the wildfires, and Great Smoky Mountains National Park officials said all of the park's facilities were closed because of extensive fire activity and downed trees. "I have been watching the terrible fires in the Great Smoky Mountains and I am heartbroken," Parton said in a written statement.

About 12,000 homes and businesses were left without power in the area and some 2,000 people sought refuge in shelters, officials said. Downed power lines and fallen trees sparked several smaller fires, local media reported. Members of the state's National Guard have been called in to assist first responders. Firefighters have battled dozens of wildfires across the U.S. Southeast in recent weeks, where tens of thousands of acres (hectares) of forest have been scorched. "It's the apocalypse on both sides" of the city's center, volunteer Fire Department Lieutenant Bobby Balding told local 9News.

Great Smoky Mountains Fires Leave 'Scene of Destruction'

 

[SSDD]

*shrugs * been down here in SC for 14years never seen anything like this

Been down here for 65+ years...business as usual...you just need to broaden your view..my grandparents talked about smoke from fires a hundred miles away that barely made the news way back when...when there was no 24/7 news cycle and the need to keep everyone in a mild grade panic to keep the gravy train rolling.