Containment rising, fire growth slowing in WNC
Despite gusty winds, dust-dry forests and interminable drought, firefighters made significant headway over the last week toward containing Western North Carolina’s explosive wildfire season, jumping on new starts to keep their acreages low and limiting existing fires to minimal acreage growth.
Firefighters battle 50-plus square miles of WNC wildfires
Western North Carolina is ablaze with 22 wildfires currently burning through more than 50 square miles in the seven most western counties. Smoke from the fires is posing health hazards while continued severe drought conditions are leaving many communities with a limited water supply.
• Holding the line
• Arson suspected in WNC fires
• Fleeing fire
• Local water supplies drying up
• Wildfires torment residents, tourism
• Dangerous smoke hazard persists throughout WNC
Dangerous smoke hazard persists throughout WNC
Two dozen or so forest fires in Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina, and Western North Carolina have forced mandatory evacuations in WNC, but the impact is being felt and smelt far beyond the remote coves where they smolder.
Wildfires torment residents, tourism
Our backyard is on fire.
From Knoxville to Asheville, a large cloud of smoke is currently hovering over this corner of Southern Appalachia. In a seemingly “whack-a-mole” scenario, wildfires keep popping up or are combining at an alarming rate. And though officials are saying these blazes will soon be under control, one question lingers — when will they be extinguished?
Local water supplies drying up: Paper mill may have to suspend production
The severe drought plaguing Western North Carolina has taken its toll on the local water supply, and residents are being asked to conserve what they can.
Swain family faces evacuation as fire encroaches
Home to the Hancock family for generations, the hills and hollows along Silvermine Road are an ingrained identity for siblings Teresa Hancock, Christy Birchfield and Garry Hancock. But this year is the first in their decades of living that smoke has obscured the sky, ash has rained from the air, and flickers of flame have threatened the home that’s served as setting for memories across the seasons of life.
Despite fire growth, wildfire containment improving; rain desperately needed
As of press time Nov. 15, Western North Carolina was ablaze with 22 wildfires burning through more than 50 square miles in the seven western counties, and while that’s significantly more than the 14 fires that were burning 17.5 square miles at press time last week, firefighters are feeling good about how the week has gone.
Western NC struggles with historic drought
Western North Carolina continues to be in a severe drought as wildfires rage through the mountains. The lack of rain has also impacted wildlife, outdoor recreation and agriculture in the region.
• Data-driven analysis drives modern weather forecasting
• Low water levels cut the season short
• Wildlife rides out the drought
Up in smoke: Wildfires rage across a bone-dry WNC
Billowing smoke and inundations of suited-up firefighters have become the norm for many areas in Western North Carolina over the past couple weeks as tinderbox conditions have lured flames across more than 11,000 acres — about 17.5 square miles — of forested land in the Nantahala National Forest and adjacent private property.
High-speed internet project plods along
The all-important push to bring high-speed internet to Western North Carolina generated a lot of optimism earlier this summer when the town of Waynesville and the Land of Sky Regional Council entered into an agreement with the goal of expanding high-speed internet service to the area.
