Forest fire spreads to 374 acres in Jackson County
Smoke is clouding the Sylva area following the eruption of a wildfire Sunday, Oct. 23, which grew to about 374 acres by Tuesday morning, Oct. 24. Take a drive along U.S. 74, and you’re likely to feel an itch in your throat from the smoke. Look for a mountain view, and the slopes ahead will appear covered by a gauzy haze.
“We don’t know the cause of this fire, but we know that a lot of fires in Western North Carolina are started because of humans,” said Cathy Dowd, public information officer for the U.S. Forest Service’s Asheville office. “They leave their campfires unattended or they burn their brush and it gets out of control, so we ask that folks not start a fire unless it’s absolutely necessary.”
The fire began in the Nantahala National Forest Sunday morning but spread to private land before it could be contained — it’s located in an area to the southeast of Dicks Creek Road. Four homes and the Dicks Creek Baptist Church are at risk, with structures in some cases sitting within a few hundred feet of the fire. However, Dowd said, the structures are not considered to be in immediate danger and no evacuations have been ordered, though access to the area is being restricted. Dicks Creek Road is currently closed except to people living along it.
Response to the fire launched swiftly, with local Jackson County crews as well as crews from the U.S. Forest Service, N.C. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management’s Lakeview, Oregon office getting to work on containment lines that same day. Currently, 65 firefighters are on scene, with local agencies including Jackson County Emergency Management, Jackson County Fire Marshal, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Qualla Fire Department, Sylva Fire Department, Cullowhee Fire Department and Savannah Fire Department.
In addition to building hand and dozer lines, firefighters are battling the blaze by clearing brush and leaves away from buildings nearby and using a water-dropping helicopter.
The fire is 60 percent contained, and while its size grew by more than 100 acres from Monday to Tuesday, Dowd said she doesn’t expect it to expand much more. It has now nearly reached the containment lines, which should bring the spread to a halt.
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However, the firefighting efforts — and the smoke — will likely last through the end of the week.
“I expect that this fire is going to last several days,” Dowd said.
Things in WNC have been exceedingly dry over the last few months, and fuels are quite flammable. Though some rain is in the forecast for Thursday, Oct. 27, no significant precipitation is likely in the near future. And autumn winds have the power to pick up and spread a dying fire.
“We still have leaves on the trees so it’s not as bad as it could be in a couple of weeks, but we’re expecting to dryness to continue October and November,” Dowd said.
Drought has been a reality in WNC since the spring, with the U.S. Drought Monitor in May classifying 17 western counties as experiencing moderate drought. Conditions have only worsened since, with Cherokee, Clay and Macon counties now in extreme drought, the first time since 2011 that classification has been used in North Carolina. Another nine counties — including Haywood, Swain and Macon are experiencing severe drought and eight more are experiencing moderate drought.
Streams and rivers are running low, and many springs are completely dry. Water conservation and extreme caution when starting a fire of any kind will be needed until rainfall returns to the region. The Forest Service advises that people — especially those living on forested land — keep a bag with medications, pet supplies and extra clothing handy in case a fire were to start near their home and require swift evacuation.
Fall wildfire season typically lasts from mid-October until mid-December — the Dicks Creek Fire is the first significant blaze to ignite national forest land so far this autumn. There was a small fire in Panthertown Valley on Sunday, Oct. 16, but it was put out that same day and burned just one-tenth of an acre. Another fire, currently at 10 acres, has also been reported at Linville Gorge.
