BRANTLEY COUNTY, Ga. — A volunteer firefighter in Hilliard, Florida died battling a wildfire there while more than 120 homes have been destroyed in Southeast Georgia and thousands more remain threatened. That’s the largest number of homes Georgia has ever lost to wildfires in the state’s history, Gov. Brian Kemp said Friday.
At about noon Saturday, the Brantley County Sheriff’s Office ordered more evacuations for Browntown Road from Hwy 82 to Hwy 32. “LEAVE NOW,” a sheriff’s office social media post said.
The U.S. Highway 82 wildfire has grown overnight to about 9,572 acres, a few thousand acres more than the previous day. The Georgia Forestry Commission said the fire was 10 percent contained.
That fire has destroyed about 87 homes and business by Saturday morning.
The Pineland Road Fire in Clinch County grew a few hundred acres to about 31,976 acres, the Georgia Forestry Commission said late Friday. More than 30 homes were destroyed there.
Destroyed homes in current wildfires most in Georgia’s history
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who toured much of the scorched areas in the southern part of the state Friday, said the 120 homes lost to wildfires in Brantley and Clinch counties are the most in the state’s history.
“The two fires we’re fighting, among many others in Georgia, ... the Pineland fire and the Highway 82 fire rank No. 1 and 2 in the country,” Kemp said during a news briefing Friday at the Waycross-Ware County Airport. “So we got the two most dangerous, biggest, problematic fires anywhere in the United States in the small area we’re having to fight. It’s a lot for us to deal with.”
WATCH: Gov. Brian Kemp gives update on Georgia wildfires
How Brantley Co. fire started
Officials said the wildfire in Brantley County was started by a balloon from a kids’ birthday party that landed on a power line and created an arc, which caught the ground on fire.
Volunteer firefighter dies in Northeast Florida
The Hilliard Volunteer Fire Department in Nassau County lost one of their members who was battling a blaze there Thursday. James “Kevin” Crews was fighting the Old Dixie Highway Fire just south of Henry Smith Road in Hilliard when he began experiencing a medical emergency, a town news release stated Friday.
He was taken to UF Health on New Kings Road for further treatment and died at the hospital.
County-by-County Wildfires Update
Northeast Florida
Baker County
- Sargent Fire - 2,523 acres, 81% contained
Bradford County
- Deden Fire - 180 acres, 50% contained
Columbia County
- Gun Range Fire - 129 acres, 50% contained
Clay, Putnam counties
- Railroad Fire - 4743 acres, 70% contained
Putnam County
- Pace Court Fire - 343 acres, 85% contained
- Mondex 3 Fire - 300 acres, 30% contained
CLICK HERE to view Florida Forestry Commission’s interactive wildfires map
Southeast Georgia
Brantley County
- Highway 82 Fire - 9,572 acres, 10% contained
Mandatory Evacuations:
- Browntown Road from Hwy 82 to Hwy 32
- Browntown Road from Hwy 82 to Greenleaf Rd
- GA-110 (Yellow Pine Rd) to Thrower Rd
- Happy Hollow
- Drury Ln & Drury Ct
- Coffee County Club Rd
- From Thrower Rd to Mossy Oak
- Highway 110 from Highway 32 to Lane Cemetery Road to include from Lisa Lane to the Satilla River.
Voluntary evacuation
- U.S. 301 from the county line to Rowell Road to the west of Highway 110, north to Highway 32 and east of Highway 110 to the county line.
Glynn county state of emergency
Glynn County declared a local State of Emergency to ensure resources can be deployed without delay.
Glynn County officials are urging residents living between Highway 82 and Highway 32 from Old Post Road to Highway 99, and those who live on and between Old Post Road and Buck Swamp Road south of Highway 82, to review emergency plans and gather essential items in case conditions worsen and they must evacuate.
Clinch County
- Pineland Road Fire - 31,976 acres, 10% contained.
CLICK HERE to view Georgia Forestry Commission’s interactive wildfires map
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
