POLK COUNTY, N.C. – The fight against destructive wildfires tearing through North Carolina and South Carolina are being significantly hampered by Hurricane Helene’s lingering devastation, officials revealed, calling the situation “an absolute travesty.”Adding to fire-related concerns in the region, South Carolina continues to address the large Table Rock Fire in Pickens County, prompting Gov. Henry McMaster to issue a state of emergency. New evacuations were ordered on Wednesday for Greenville and Pickens counties as the South Carolina Forestry Commission works to contain the nearly 2,300-acre fire. “As this wildfire continues to spread, the state of emergency allows us to mobilize resources quickly and ensure our firefighters have the support they need to protect lives and property,” McMaster said. Helene swept through the region in late September, leaving behind a trail of destruction that is now proving to be a major obstacle in containing the blazes that have consumed over 6,000 acres in North Carolina alone.As evacuation orders remain in place for several neighborhoods, the stark reality of the intertwined disasters is becoming increasingly clear, North Carolina Forest Service Supervisor Nicholas Hoffmann said.EVACUATIONS EXPAND IN CAROLINAS AS WILDFIRES RAGE IN HURRICANE HELENE-RAVAGED AREAS”It is an absolute travesty that it’s happened,” he emphasized. “And the Helene damage is actually one of the biggest contributing factors to the difficulty in fighting this fire because of all the damage, the landslides, the lack of access that it has created … in addition to the steep, steep terrain and the high winds we’re having right now.”Fire officials are now grappling with a two-layered crisis.FOX Weather meteorologists and correspondents spent weeks on the ground in North Carolina following Helene, and their reports painted a stark picture of the sheer volume of fallen trees and debris that would dry out and become potent fuel, increasing the fire risk.”You have thousands of trees that are just lying in the forest that have been drying up over the last couple of months, and it’s a tinderbox,” FOX Weather Meteorologist Britta Merwin said. “These are hard areas to access. That’s what made it so challenging with Helene and the response efforts, and they’re still trying to rebuild. Now, they have a second natural disaster pretty much on their hands.”As fires continue to burn, Mother Nature is not doing the area any favors with another dry and windy day on tap for Wednesday. The FOX Forecast Center said westerly winds will descend on the east side of the Appalachians, where they’ll be warm and dry. This will contribute to afternoon temperatures in the 60s and 70s, winds between 15 and 30 mph and relative humidity below 30%. These are ripe conditions for the spread of ongoing or new fires.Although it will remain dry on Thursday, the fire threat will not be as great as it is Wednesday, as high pressure moves in overhead and causes the winds to diminish.The destructive power of wildfires in Polk County has become evident after 11 homes were destroyed on Tuesday.Officials report that the Black Cove Fire, which was started by a downed power line, has burned over 3,000 acres and remains uncontained. The nearby Deep Woods Fire has also consumed nearly 3,000 acres with no containment. The smaller Fish Hook Fire is partially contained, but the situation led to the evacuation of 165 homes by Tuesday evening.By Tuesday evening, emergency management officials in Henderson County had mandated evacuations for the Summer Haven community and four other neighborhoods. An additional dozen nearby communities were also under pre-evacuation advisories.NEW WILDFIRE NEARLY TRAPS DEPUTIES SEARCHING FOR HIKER MISSING WEEKS IN SOUTH CAROLINA WILDERNESSSimultaneously, South Carolina also issued evacuation orders Tuesday evening in Greenville and Pickens counties due to the Persimmon Ridge Fire, which is part of the larger Table Rock Fire Complex. Those evacuations were expanded on Wednesday to residents of Oil Camp Creek Road east to River Falls Road and south to Highway 11 to West Gate Road.The South Carolina Forestry Commission said that good progress was made in battling the blaze on Tuesday, but later, “wind gusts dramatically increased fire activity.”The Table Rock Fire has burned nearly 2,300 acres, and the Persimmon Ridge Fire has charred about 1,000 acres. Both are at 0% containment. On the eastern side of the state, the Horry Fire has engulfed nearly 2,300 acres and is almost fully contained.
