Update: WNC wildfire grows to 310 acres in Jackson County; fires total over 5 square miles
The East Fork Fire in Jackson County has now spread to 310 acres in the Nantahala National Forest and is 50% contained, according to a Nov. 7 update from the North Carolina State Forest wildfire public viewer.
The fire covered 125 acres Nov. 6 after starting Nov. 4, according to a Nov. 6 Facebook post from the U.S. Forest Service.
As of the post, three 20-person hand crews, one dozer, two engines, and additional resources are responding to the East Fork Fire, according to the news release. The fire is located within the Savannah Fire District, southwest of Cullowhee. The cause of the fire is unknown.
The statement from the U.S. Forest Service said:
"Fire behavior is very active and is burning in steep and rugged terrain. Firefighters are working on establishing containment lines around the fire and conducting burn out operations where terrain and weather conditions allow. Crews are providing structure protections to a few threatened structures in the area."
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The fire is the third major Western North Carolina wildfire to develop in the past few days. In Cherokee County, the Collett Ridge fire has now spread to over 4.5 square miles. The Poplar Drive fire in Henderson County has burned down two houses, spreading to 431 acres.
On Nov. 5, a burning ban was put in place across 14 Western North Carolina counties as a severe drought conditions continue. Rain is not expected in the area until Nov. 10.
“It’s going to continue to be dry through Thursday, and there’s some chance of rain on Friday,” meteorologist Doug Outlaw with the National Weather Service said to the Citizen Times Nov. 6. “But the rain we are expecting on Friday and Friday night is only expected to be a tenth of an inch for the Hendersonville and Asheville area, and maybe 2 tenths of an inch over in the Great Smoky Mountains.”
As of Nov. 6, The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality has issued a Code Red air quality alert for three Western North Carolina counties, while other counties have been issued a Code Orange alert. Macon, Clay and Cherokee counties were under Code Red. Graham, Henderson, Jackson, Swain and Transylvania counties are under Code Orange until 3:30 a.m. Nov. 8.
On Nov. 6, Buncombe County declared a state of local emergency and banned all outdoor burning, except for using outdoor grills to prepare food. The state of emergency will persist until county officials lift it.
Buncombe County will notify residents of an emergency. Residents can sign up for alerts by texting “BCAlert” to 99411 or going to buncombecounty.org/codered.
While moderate-to-severe drought conditions persist in WNC, Buncombe and other counties hit similar levels in 2022 and 2019, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Drought conditions have not yet reached 2016 levels, when extended drought conditions across WNC contributed to 34 wildfires that burned throughout November, eventually burning some 60,000 acres of forest. They also led to 14 deaths in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, after the Chimney Tops Fire that started in Great Smoky Mountains National Park raged outside the park's borders.
Buncombe is encouraging residents to develop safety plans.
“Experts also recommend creating a ‘go kit’ with medications, important bank documents, social security cards, insurance policies, water, food, pet supplies, and more,” a Nov. 6 news release read.
Residents can learn more about safety plans at readync.gov.
Poplar Drive Fire, Day 4: No further structures damaged as fire is still 5% contained
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Will Hofmann is the Growth and Development Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Got a tip? Email him at WHofmann@citizentimes.com.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Jackson County wildfire burns 310 acres; WNC fires over 5 square miles
