BRANTLEY COUNTY, GA — Recent rainfall is helping firefighters gain ground as they battle wildfires across South Georgia.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is returning to the region Tuesday to get an update on the ongoing wildfires. Gov. Kemp said rain over the weekend provided some relief for crews working to contain the blazes and helped them make progress.
“Everybody is feeling really good about that. We’re definitely not out of the woods, but we’re feeling a lot better,” Kemp said. “We’ve got to stay vigilant here. They’ve done a great job taking advantage of a good weather day yesterday. The team here was telling us that they had a good day yesterday.”
However, Gov. Kemp warns there is still a long way to go to.
The Pineland Fire has now burned more than 32,000 acres and is 23 percent contained while the Highway 82 Fire in Brantley County has burned more than 22,000 acres, or more than 30 square miles and is about one-third contained.
More than 400 fire personnel are responding, along with heavy equipment including over 40 engines, plows and eight helicopters dropping water and fire retardant.
The Georgia Environmental Protection Division has also declared a Level 1 drought response statewide for public water systems.
Last week, Gov. Kemp declared a state of emergency for more than 90 counties due to the wildfires.
Data shows 98% of Georgia is experiencing severe drought conditions, with extreme drought covering 71% of the state, including metro Atlanta. About 9.6 million Georgians are living in drought-affected areas, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
“We’re still in the worst drought that we’ve seen in 20 years,” Gov. Kemp said.
Gov. Kemp said residents will live with long-term impacts of the drought and wildfires for a long time.