NAHUNTA, Ga. (AP) — Wildfires tearing through the South have forced hundreds of Georgia residents to flee in minutes, leaving them distraught about the homes and animals they left behind.
The fires that spread this week during an extreme drought in Georgia and Florida have blanketed cities hundreds of miles (kilometers) away in smoke, leading to more air quality warnings Thursday across the Southeast.
Driven by strong winds and low humidity, the two biggest fires in southern Georgia have spread rapidly over the past two days and destroyed more than 50 homes in rural areas. But the growing threat led to more evacuations and school closings on Wednesday.
“I don’t know if I have a house standing or not,” said Denise Stephens, who was forced to evacuate because of the fast-moving Brantley County fire near Georgia's coast. "I know what it’s taken from other people, but I don’t know what I have left standing.”
The weather forecast Thursday appeared to warn of another high-risk day, with shifting winds that could send embers flying in all directions a major concern.
Fires were continuing to pop up across Georgia. Fire crews responded to 34 new and relatively small blazes on Wednesday, the Georgia Forestry Commission said. In Florida, firefighters were battling more than 130 wildfires, mostly in the state’s northern half.
Georgia officials say the wildfires are being fueled in part by fallen trees and limbs still on the ground since Hurricane Helene crossed the state’s southern region in September 2024.
“There’s a ton of old Hurricane Helene debris down in the woods,” said Seth Hawkins, a Georgia Forestry Commission spokesperson. “It’s laying around and it’s just a tinderbox out there.”
It was not known yet how the wildfires started, but the bottom half of Georgia and northern Florida are both extremely dry.
In Georgia, the Brantley County fire has caused much of the structural damage across 7 square miles (18 kilometers) but remained stable overnight, the sheriff’s office said Thursday.
Source: WPLG
