"Pray for rain."
That's the message being posted on signs outside businesses and churches in southeast Georgia as a raging wildfire continues to burn into its second week.
It even prompted special prayers Sunday night at the Church of God of Prophecy in the little town of Manor.
By Monday night, the blaze, dubbed the Sweat Farm Road fire, had consumed some 56,000 acres and continued to fill the sky with dense smoke. The smoky conditions – expected to worsen in the early morning hours Tuesday when it combines with fog – prompted Ware County public schools to remain closed through at least Tuesday.
Visibility was so limited that some roads were closed. Winds were forecast to push the smoke toward Waycross over the next few days, making driving hazardous and causing renewed health concerns. The Satilla Regional Medical Center in Waycross was restricting some entrances to its facility and shutting down some elevators, among other precautions, to limit smoke in the building.
Smoky conditions from the fire spread hundreds of miles over the weekend into Florida and north into Tennessee.
Firefighters reported making progress in battling the blaze Monday after using bulldozers to widen firebreaks. The fire was reported 45 percent contained but officials estimated that full containment was not expected for another week. Hundreds of firefighters from several states were fighting the fire.
The blaze, which began April 16 apparently when a tree fell on a power line, has destroyed 18 homes. It was reported about 10 miles west of Waycross and five miles from Manor.
It has also moved to within less than half a mile of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, one of the nation's oldest and most well-preserved wetland areas.
That's the message being posted on signs outside businesses and churches in southeast Georgia as a raging wildfire continues to burn into its second week.
It even prompted special prayers Sunday night at the Church of God of Prophecy in the little town of Manor.
By Monday night, the blaze, dubbed the Sweat Farm Road fire, had consumed some 56,000 acres and continued to fill the sky with dense smoke. The smoky conditions – expected to worsen in the early morning hours Tuesday when it combines with fog – prompted Ware County public schools to remain closed through at least Tuesday.
Visibility was so limited that some roads were closed. Winds were forecast to push the smoke toward Waycross over the next few days, making driving hazardous and causing renewed health concerns. The Satilla Regional Medical Center in Waycross was restricting some entrances to its facility and shutting down some elevators, among other precautions, to limit smoke in the building.
Smoky conditions from the fire spread hundreds of miles over the weekend into Florida and north into Tennessee.
Firefighters reported making progress in battling the blaze Monday after using bulldozers to widen firebreaks. The fire was reported 45 percent contained but officials estimated that full containment was not expected for another week. Hundreds of firefighters from several states were fighting the fire.
The blaze, which began April 16 apparently when a tree fell on a power line, has destroyed 18 homes. It was reported about 10 miles west of Waycross and five miles from Manor.
It has also moved to within less than half a mile of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, one of the nation's oldest and most well-preserved wetland areas.
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