Virginia rotates crews and sends additional resources out of state

Its been 2 weeks since Virginia had sent engines and crew to FL. Plans were to rotate in fresh firefighters, however the fire our folks were assigned to in FL received some really good rains the last two evenings and so they were demobed. BUT!! there were several new fires in NC and our 5 engines and 11 fresh crew will be assigned to one of those NC fires. In addition several single resources are going to other states.

State of emergency in N.C. over wildfires

Three wildfires burning across 68,000 acres prompted Gov. Bev Perdue to declare a state of emergency in 29 eastern counties Saturday

The Pender County fire, which started with a lightning strike a week ago, continued to threaten Holly Ridge to the east and remained only about 15 percent contained.

"There are some homes that are still endangered," N.C. Forestry Service spokesman Brian Haines said. "But the threat is not imminent."

Read more: http://www.thesunnews.com/2011/06/26/2242531/state-of-emergency-in-nc.html#ixzz1QNHeeHau

This is the fire/area that a Prevention and Education Team focusing on firewise community outreach and prevention will be working for the next 2 weeks.

As smoke lingers, Georgia forestry officials are planning prevention steps

National program educates about safety and prevention
A Wildfire Prevention and Education Team is headding to SE GA under an agreement that states can share resources. The South East and Mid Atlantic compact is sending fols from OH, VA and GA to Folkston to assist with community outreach and wildfire prevention.

Georgia Forestry Commission spokesman Eric Mosley puts it bluntly.

"Right now, Georgia can't afford any more wildfires," he said.

It has already cost more than $20 million to fight one of the fires, the nearly 300,000-acre Honey Prairie Fire in the Okefenokee Swamp. Georgia will be saddled with much of the cost of fighting a couple of others, the Race Pond Fire along U.S. 1 at the juncture of Brantley, Ware and Charlton counties and the Sweat Farm Again Fire, about 10 miles west of Waycross. Those two alone burned more than 40,000 acres and sent people fleeing from their homes on several occasions.

Those started by lightning or by accident, but some others in the area were started from prohibited trash burning. Regardless of how they start, the stress and cost of fires can be reduced, Mosley said.

Oklahoma Wildfire Forces 1,500 To Evacuate

At least 13 Comanche County homes have already been destroyed and firefighters are battling to prevent further damage.

"Crews worked diligently overnight to fully contain the fire which caused the evacuation of more than 500 homes and destroyed 13," a representative of the Comanche County Emergency Management System said Saturday in a news release.

The wildfire began on Fort Sill's West range in the impact area Thursday afternoon. The fire spread over 4,000 acres on the Fort. It eventually jumped over Highway 49 and headed to Medicine Park late Thursday evening causing numerous evacuations and destroying several homes

Florida, Georgia fires still raging

FOLKSTON, Ga. -- Sparked and spread by dry thunderstorms that are doing more harm than good, wildfires burning in southeast Georgia had communities watching nervously as flames spread overnight to destroy mobile homes in Camden County, a house and barn in Ware County and threaten about 50 homes in neighboring Charlton County.

"It's close enough to make everybody pretty nervous," said John Meyer, emergency management director for Charlton County. "We're doing a lot of praying, that's for sure."