BLACK COVE FIRES AT A GLANCE
Black Cove Complex Total Size: 7,670 acres
Black Cove – 3,501 acres | Deep Woods – 3,970 acres | Fish Hook – 199 acres
Containment:
Black Cove – 35% | Deep Woods – 32% | Fish Hook – 100%
Cause:
Black Cove – Powerline | Deep Woods – Under investigation | Fish Hook – Powerline
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Humidity continues to recover well overnight as rain chances increase for today and Monday.
Humidity recovery overnight was excellent last night, leading to an overall reduction in fire behavior and an increase in access to construct, patrol and mop up containment lines. Patchy showers in the early morning further tempered fire behavior today.
With the fire primarily creeping and smoldering, firefighting crews are focused on patrolling and mopping up any remaining hot spot areas as well as conducting repairs on areas most impacted by firefighting activities.
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Evacuations: Evacuation levels are constantly being assessed based on fire activity. For updated or current evacuation notices for Polk County, please refer to Polk County’s website. For updated or current evacuation notices for Henderson County, please refer to Henderson County’s website.
Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR): A TFR is in place at an altitude from the surface up to and including 5,500 feet, daily (24 hours) until further notice. Firefighting aircraft that respond to wildfires fly low in support of ground personnel. Drones can pose a serious threat to pilot and public safety. A drone that disrupts air operations also puts firefighters, residents and property at risk of loss to wildfire.
State of Emergency: On Tuesday, March 26, Governor Josh Stein declared a State of Emergency to expand the state’s capacity to respond to the wildfires burning in Western North Carolina.
Statewide Ban on Open Burning: Effective 8 a.m. Friday, March 21, a ban on all open burning was issued statewide. All burning permits are canceled. No new permits are being issued. The ban remains in effect until further notice. Read news release.
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To check wildfire activity across the state, use the North Carolina Wildfire Public Viewer at https://ncfspublic.firesponse.com/.
Subscribe to receive updates from the N.C. Forest Service about wildfires, burn bans and other topics at https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/NCFS/subscriber/new.
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