The Table Rock wildfire burning in South Carolina continued to grow Thursday, but conditions that created dramatic expansion the day before eased, officials said.
The fire, which was started March 21 by hikers, had burned an estimated 8,679 acres by 4:30 p.m. Thursday when a flight captured infrared data, the South Carolina Forestry Commission said.
Hundreds of residents in North Carolina and South Carolina have been ordered to leave and structures have been destroyed in the fires, which are burning amid abnormally dry or drought conditions in both states.
Downed timber left in the wake of Hurricane Helene, a devastating storm that struck in September, has also been fueling the fires' spread, officials have said.
“The amount of downed debris and timber in the woods is almost indescribable,” Madeline Stewart, the South Carolina Forestry Commission Public Information Coordinator, said on NBC’s “TODAY” show.
North Carolina fires
In North Carolina, there are eight active wildfires in Caldwell, Buncombe, Polk, Jackson, Haywood and Swain counties, according to an interactive map by the North Carolina Forest Service.
New fires sparked in dry conditions Wednesday, prompting Gov. Josh Stein to declare another state of emergency “to make sure we have every tool at our disposal” to respond to fires in the western part of the state.
The worst blazes are the Black Cove Complex Fire and the Deep Woods Fire, both in Polk County and Henderson County.
The Black Cove Complex fire has burned around 3,288 acres and was 17% contained Thursday evening, the North Carolina Department of Agriculture said in an update. The fire first ignited March 19 by a downed power line.
"Fire behavior has continued to be intense, with rapid fire spread and extreme burning conditions due to high winds and dry weather," the department said.
But on the Deep Woods Fire, there was better news Thursday. There was progress on containment of that fire, which has burned an estimated 3,373 acres in size and was 30% contained by that evening, the department said. It was first reported March 19 and the cause is under investigation.
A third fire that had prompted evacuation orders, the Fish Hook Fire, was 199 acres in size and 95% contained. Evacuation orders had previously been lifted.
South Carolina fires
In South Carolina, the Table Rock Fire and the Persimmon Ridge Fire were the two major wildfires in the state.
The Persimmon Ridge Fire "saw only modest expansion" Thursday as conditions were milder than what was seen Wednesday, state officials said.
The fire grew to 1,992 acres Thursday, but the state forestry department said most of that growth was from "burnouts" created by firefighters between existing fire breaks.
The Table Rock Fire was started by “the negligent act of some hikers," the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office said last week.
“The young men that are responsible for the fire have been identified. The investigation is continuing by agents and detectives with the sheriff’s office as well as those with the South Carolina Forestry Commission, and the appropriate charges will be discussed and made at a later date,” Sheriff Tommy Blankenship said in a March 21 statement.
On Wednesday, the South Carolina Forestry commission called for the immediate evacuations of residents in Greenville and Pickens counties.
“Never in my 52 years did I think would I be running from my home in a fire,” said Wendy Clarke, who evacuated her home in the Caesar's Head area near the Persimmon Ridge Fire to a local shelter.
