South Carolina Wildfire Footage Captures ‘Zero Visibility' Conditions
As wildfires rage across parts of the Carolinas and Georgia, officials are urging some residents not to travel unless absolutely necessary, citing dangerous travel conditions.
South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency on Sunday as firefighters continued to battle the blaze in the Horry County section of the Carolina Forest just outside of Myrtle Beach. As of the late evening hours on March 2, the fire was only about 30 percent contained and had scorched 1,600 acres, per the South Carolina Forestry Commission (SCFC), with many taking the evacuation orders seriously and fleeing.
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Come Monday morning, the number of fires dwindled from 175 to 163, per SCFC. But what's been described as a heavy and low-hanging "blanket of smoke" added another layer of difficulty to not only first responders but also those living in the area.
In footage obtained by local WMBF News reporters, "zero visibility" conditions are present across parts of Highway 501 and Highway 31 to Water Tower Road.
Live traffic cameras captured the thick haze coating the highways, as seen in an X (formerly Twitter) post shared by WMBF's chief meteorologist Jamie Arnold. Arnold also re-posted several other shots of smoke-filled skies taken by locals.
Arnold's colleague, meteorologist Andrew Dockery, hit the road for a first-person perspective of the intense smoke on Carolina Forest Boulevard and Walkers Woods Reserve, sharing photos and videos to X of the "poor air quality" and "thick smoke."
A spokesperson for Horry County Fire Rescue also asked "people to avoid the Carolina Forest Boulevard area as the work to contain the fire continues," according to the outlet.
"Officials are urging you not to travel on Carolina Forest Blvd this morning if you don't need to," Dockery warned early Monday morning. "THICK smoke is creating zero visibility, especially in locations near 501. Officials are hoping to keep most of the road clear for first responders and other personnel."
Russell Hubright, the South Carolina Forestry Commission Chief, described the flames as "very erratic" in a conversation with NBC's Today show this morning.
"You saw that the flames are low and all of a sudden they jumped up right? So wind changes can do that in this kind of a fuel type as we call it, so it can be a little scary," he added.
Outside of Horry County, fires have burned an estimated 4,200 acres across the state, including in Spartanburg, Union, Oconee and Pickens counties, McMaster's office said in a statement Sunday.
First responders also continued to battle at least four active fires in North Carolina early Monday and at least six active fires in Georgia on Sunday, according to the states' forestry websites. Officials in Tennessee also reported that four small fires had been burning on Sunday, but they were all contained or controlled by early Monday morning.
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