A Wildfire Advisory

From: “Vansant, Coleen” Date: February 24, 2011 1:54:45 PM CST

ALABAMA FORESTRY COMMISSION
Wildfire Advisory
February 24, 2011

The large fire in Cherokee County continues to burn. According to Incident Commander Phillip Smith the fire is now approximately 60 percent contained. Acreage is estimated at more than 1,200 acres. The fire is located on Weisner Mountain, northeast of the City of Hokes Bluff. Currently there are five tractor units on the fire, 2 from Cherokee, and one each from Cullman, DeKalb and Etowah. Additional firefighting personnel are from Morgan, Cullman, Etowah, Cherokee, DeKalb and Shelby counties. Firefighters have been on the fire since around 1:00 p.m. Wednesday, February 23. Gusty winds, warm temperatures, and low humidity, along with extremely rough terrain are making containment difficult.

At 1:45 p.m. today there were 15 active fires burning in Alabama. On Wednesday, February 23 Alabama had 55 fires for 1,526 acres. In the last seven days, 314 fires have burned 10,727 acres across the state.

You can monitor active fires by going to the Alabama Forestry Commission web page at www.forestry.alabama.gov and clicking the “Fire in the Woods” tab on the left side of the screen. Then click “Current Wildfire Totals” or Current Wildfire Map” for current information.

Coleen Vansant
Wildland/Urban Interface Coordinator
Alabama Forestry Commission
6650 Old Highway 31 North
Gardendale, Alabama 35071
Fax – 205-631-9128
E-mail address – Coleen.Vansant@forestry.alabama.gov

Category: Alabama's Weather