Two massive wildfires raging in drought-stricken Georgia in the southeastern United States have already destroyed more than 120 homes and threaten nearly 1,000 more. On Friday during firefighting one Florida volunteer firefighter died. According to Gov. Brian Kemp the flames destroyed the most homes in Georgia history. TASR informs about it based on the report of the AP agency.
A fire in Brantley County, according to local authorities, caused a balloon that landed on a power line. Burns on the surface more than 20 square kilometers and on Friday the firemen controlled only 15 percent of the flames. Local authorities are ordering new evacuations almost every day in the ever-expanding area of the fire.
“This fire cannot be stopped,” admitted Kemp. “We have to keep it from spreading to the sides and the rear, and then hopefully the weather will change,” he declared. A second, more extensive fire in sparsely populated Clinch and Echols counties on the Florida border destroyed 35 homes, according to the governor. The flames there have already burned more than 129 square kilometers.
Firefighters in Georgia and neighboring Florida are struggling with more than 150 other smaller fires spreading smoke to more distant areas. In several cities, therefore, they warned of deteriorating air quality.
Scientists say that the east of the United States is at greater risk of intense wildfires due to climate change, record drought, and the amount of dead trees that cover the south of the statesince Hurricane Helene swept through it in 2004.
