Maps show wildfires burning in the Carolinas as evacuations and emergency declarations prompted

Firefighters in North and South Carolina continue to battle wildfires that grew rapidly over the weekend in rugged terrain, complicating containment efforts, officials said. 

In North Carolina, fires in one county exploded in size and prompted mandatory evacuations, as emergency crews fought separate fires in an area still recovering from Hurricane Helene. Meanwhile, in South Carolina, the governor declared an emergency in response to a growing blaze in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

The North Carolina Department of Public Safety announced a mandatory evacuation on Saturday for parts of Polk County in western North Carolina, about 80 miles west of Charlotte. Those evacuation orders remain in place for about 165 properties.

Three wildfires burning in Polk County have spread over nearly 2,500 acres, according to the North Carolina Forest Service, and the two larger fires were not contained at all. Firefighters have been able to contain about half of a third, smaller fire covering some 150 acres, the forest service said. Two other fires were active in nearby Burke and Madison counties, with a third wildfire burning in Stokes County on the northern border with Virginia.

Public safety officials had warned over the weekend of potentially deadly consequences for residents who failed to follow evacuation orders. 

“Visibility in area will be reduced and roads/evacuation routes can become blocked; if you do not leave now, you could be trapped, injured, or killed,” the agency said in a social media post.

It is the second time in less than a month that Polk County residents have faced evacuations due to wildfires, which come after Hurricane Helene devasted the area last year.

“It’s not just the high winds, the low humidity, the steep terrain, but they’re also dealing with storm debris that’s blocking UTV trails, regular roads, and them just getting in on foot because we have so many trees down,” Kellie Cannon, a spokesperson for Polk County, told CBS affiliate WSPA.

Cannon said the residents of Polk County are “extremely resilient” after enduring Helene and the last round of wildfires earlier this month.

North Carolina’s western region already had been hit hard by Hurricane Helene in September. The hurricane damaged or impacted 5,000 miles of state-maintained roads and damaged 7,000 private roads, bridges and culverts.

Emergency declared in South Carolina

In South Carolina, Gov. Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency amid efforts to stop two blazes that spread quickly in the mountains. One blaze, called the Table Rock Fire, in Pickens County, has grown to about 1,300 acres, or just over 2 square miles, according to the South Carolina Forestry Commission. The figure includes several hundred acres that firefighters intentionally burned to try to contain the flames, officials said. 

A second fire, on Persimmon Ridge in Greenville County, started Saturday and eventually spread over about 800 acres, or 1.25 square miles. Both the Table Rock and Persimmon Ridge fires were fanned by strong winds and have been difficult to manage in mountainous terrain, the forestry commission said.

No injuries have been reported as of Tuesday morning and no structures were imminently threatened, officials said, although voluntary evacuations remained in place for about 100 homes.

Local fire officials called for voluntary evacuations Saturday of some residents near Table Rock Mountain, the forestry commission said in a social media post.

Human activity caused both South Carolina fires. In a video on Facebook, Pickens County Sheriff Tommy Blankenship, speaking about the situation at Persimmon Ridge, said the fire was started by the “negligent act” of a group of teenage hikers.

The Pickens County Sheriff’s Office posted an update late Saturday saying crews had ceased operations and would resume Sunday morning with ground personnel and machinery and assistance from helicopters and air tankers.

“It’s very steep terrain. There is a lot of what we call downed timber, blown debris, that has fallen because of Hurricane Helene,” South Carolina Forestry Commission Information Officer, Brad Bramlett told WSPA. “That just makes the conditions that much more difficult.”