A wildfire that McDowell County Emergency Management called “out of control” erupted in the western North Carolina town of Old Fort on Wednesday, just four months after the area was ravaged by Hurricane Helene. As of Wednesday evening, the blaze, dubbed the Crooked Creek Fire, has so far burned 250 acres, emergency officials said, and was 15% contained.
Evacuations are now underway in some areas in Old Fort, which was among the hardest-hit towns by Helene when it made landfall at the end of September. Local evacuation orders for residents can be found here. An emergency shelter has been opened at 203 East Main Street and residents in impacted areas have been urged to evacuate to ensure their safety, officials said.
“High winds continue to create dangerous fire conditions,” the McDowell County Emergency Management said in its latest update. “Firefighters continue to focus on structure protection for multiple homes in the area and continue work on establishing fire containment lines.”
In their 6 p.m. update, officials said the winds are expected to diminish through the evening.
The fire comes after emergency management officials issued a wind advisory that started at midnight on Wednesday. Officials had warned of 15 to 25 mph winds with gusts of up to 50 mph that were expected to last until 6 p.m. today.
The winds only added to the dry conditions being felt in the area. CBS News and Stations meteorologist Nikki Nolan said that Old Fort, which normally receives on average just under 4 inches of rain in January, has so far only received 0.58 inches. Dry conditions are known fuels for fires because of the dry vegetation, and high winds help fires spread more quickly.
According to CBS affiliate WNCN, initial reports indicate the fire was started by a tree falling onto a power line.
Tens of thousands of homes were believed to be damaged across western North Carolina from Hurricane Helene in September. In Old Fort, at least 47 homes and buildings were destroyed in the town of just over 800 people, and 36 other homes were damaged, according to the Asheville Citizen-Times.
Thousands of people remain displaced, according to the Citizen-Times.
Li Cohen is a senior social media producer at CBS News. She previously wrote for amNewYork and The Seminole Tribune. She mainly covers climate, environmental and weather news.
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