Update: Friday night the N.C. Forest Service provided more information:
Today, firefighters conducted mop-up operations along the fire perimeter, mitigating snags, extinguishing smoldering pockets and monitoring for spot fires. Dozer lines continue to be strengthened to the south and east. Fire containment has been increased to 10%. Percent containment represents sections of fire line that pose no escape risk without further action from firefighters.
There are no injuries and no structures threatened.
According to officials, the fire initially began as a much smaller controlled burn on Tuesday, which was handled by the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission.
The N.C. Forest Service Red Incident Management team is now handling the situation. Firefighters allowed the fire to grow from over 11,000 acres to 16,000 over the last two days, bringing it to the edge of Highway 211. Parts of that road are currently closed.
“To ensure safety for firefighters and travelers, NC Highway 211 has been closed between Little Macedonia and Camp Branch roads until further notice. Travelers can loop around the closure by taking Camp Branch, Makatoka and Little Macedonia roads,” according to the N.C. Forest Service (NCFS).
Below: NCFS Operations Section Chief trainee Mike Malcolm
discusses the firefighting operation:
The area of Brunswick County has not seen a fire since the 1950s, officials said, meaning there is a lot of dense vegetation powering the blaze.
“Fuels have built up for about 70 years. Vegetation is thick. These backfiring operations are necessary to improve safe access and movement for firefighting personnel,” NCFS Agency Administrator Tommy Sports said.
Firefighters aim to contain the fire inside the Green Swamp Nature Preserve.
Impacts:
- Air quality: A Code Red air quality alert has been issued for Brunswick County. A Code Orange air quality alert has been issued for New Hanover County. Information on current air quality data for North Carolina is available at https://www.airnow.gov/.
- Closures: NC Highway 211 is closed between Little Macedonia and Camp Branch roads. Updates to road closures surrounding the fire is at https://drivenc.gov/. Due to the wildfire, the Green Swamp Nature Preserve remains closed.
- Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR): A “TFR” is in place at an altitude from the surface up to and including 1,500 feet, daily (24 hours) until further notice. Complete information is available at https://tfr.faa.gov/tfr2/list.html. Flying drones within a TFR area is unlawful. Flying a drone near or around a wildfire compromises the safety of pilots and interferes with firefighting efforts.
For information updates, visit https://www.ncforestservice.gov/fire_control/sit_report.htm. Subscribe to receive wildfire alerts and information from the N.C. Forest Service at https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/NCFS/subscriber/new.