Sam Davis Road Fire blazes through 350 acres in North Carolina, prompting state of emergency
The Sam Davis Road Fire has burned 350 acres and is 0% contained
By Justin Berger
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SWAIN COUNTY, North Carolina (WLOS) — The Sam Davis Road Fire has burned 350 acres and is 0% contained, leading to Swain County declaring a state of emergency on April 19.
Officials said, additionally, in response to the escalating situation, West Elementary will be closed on Monday.
Around 30 homes have been evacuated around Big Rocky’s Road and the Sky Cove Development as well as Bobcat Trail off Dark Branch Road.
According to the incident commander, no structures have been lost.
Interactive evacuation map released for Black Cove Complex fire Less than a month after the Alarka Five Fire ignited more than 1,500 acres, scooper planes and forest service helicopters are once again flying back and forth to Fontana Lake and an active fire zone.
The Sam Davis Road Fire is burning about four miles southwest of Bryson City, only a few miles away from where the Alarka Five Fire burned.
The Sam Davis Road Fire has burned 350 acres and is 0% contained, leading to Swain County declaring a state of emergency on April 19. (Photo: WLOS Staff)
“It’s kind of unnerving; we travel back and forth to town all the time this way, and to see this kind of thing and it be so close to the house and whatnot, it makes you kind of wonder,” Chris Fairwell said.
Fairwell, who lives near where the fire was burning off Lower Alarka Rd., said the smoke was so thick near his home he wanted to check out the fire.
Chuck Taylor, a volunteer with the Bryson City Fire Department, was working with a handful of other firemen executing a back burn near a home close to Bobcat Trail.
“What we’re doing right now is called a back burn, which burns the debris from the house up to the actual fire and puts it all in the black, so once it’s in the black, it can’t burn, and this really protects the house and since this is on such a steep hill with such over-blow from the previous storms he’s doing it in tiers starting at the top and kind of working its way down towards the house and keeping it off the house,” he said.
Taylor is one of many volunteers working the Sam Davis Road Fire and told News 13 backburns are typical when fighting fire in steep terrain.
The incident commander says around 100 people from 20 departments are on the ground doing what they can to contain the flames.
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