DAHLONEGA, Ga. — Federal, state and local officials huddled in Dahlonega yesterday in an effort to update the public on the wildfires burning in Georgia and to stress the seriousness of wildfires in the drought-stricken Georgia.

Shawn Alexander is the Assistant District Manager for Georgia Forestry Service’s Coosa District which runs from the South Carolina state line to Alabama and reaches north from Atlanta to Tennessee. “I’ve been doing this for 28 years and I’ve never seen a fall this dry,” he said.
November is the usually the busiest month for wildfires but this month as Georgia parches from the extreme drought that prevails, has been extraordinay.

“November is when we usually have our big fires,” Alexander said. “Frost kills the grass, leaves fall and people want to burn the leaves.”

For the last five years, the district has averaged about 30 fire calls during the month of October. “This October we had over 300 dispatches. In November, we usually average about 78 calls but this the month is only half over and so far, we’ve had 253. So, it’s been very busy and this drought just continues to intensify.”

Currently the two largest forest fires in north Georgia are the Rough Ridge fire in Murray and Fannin counties which covers 23,759 acres and appears to have been caused by lightning. As of Thursday morning, it had been 40 percent contained. The other is at Rock Mountain in Rabun and Towns counties. Rock Mountain covers 6,700 acres and as of Wednesday morning was 100 percent contained. That fire is believed to be human-caused and is under investigation.

But, as Georgia Forestry Public Affairs Officer Judy Toppins pointed out, there is a difference between contained and extinguished.

“Contained means we have containment lines all around the fire and under prevailing conditions, we don’t expect the fire to cross those lines,” she said. But most of the leaves in the north Georgia mountains are still green and haven’t fallen yet, meaning they could offer the potential for a re-burn.

There is a burn ban in effect in the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest but Toppins said people are violating the ban almost daily. She encouraged them to obey the ban. “It’s not about the cost of the fine, it’s about the lives of the firefighters and the people who live in the community,” she said.

Officials want the public to know there are programs that can educate you about the most effective way to protect your home or community from wildfires. One such program is Firewise. You can visit https://www.firewise.org/usa-recognition-program.

U.S. Forest Service, Georgia Forestery Service and local firefighters have engaged in an outreach program for several years to help communities become firewise.

Neighborhoods throughout Georgia and the United States have joined the program which incorporates the following five steps:
⦁ Obtain a wildfire risk assessment as a written document from your state forestry agency or fire department;
⦁ Form a board or committee, and create an action plan based on the assessment;
⦁ Conduct a “Firewise Day” event;
⦁ Invest a minimum of $2 per capita in local Firewise actions for the year and
⦁ Submit an application to your state Firewise liaison.
For more information on the fires or a daily update, visit https://www.facebook.com/ChattOconeeNF.