Georgia fires smoke Southland
The wildfires down in Georgia continue to burn and they're sending palls of smoke wafting across portions of Georgia, Florida and out over the Atlantic. The plumes are easily visible from orbit.
There are actually three fire complexes. The newest is the Roundabout fire, which began Friday and has already charred 3,500 acres of land, threatening nearby homes. The Sweat Farm Road fire to the southeast has been burning for weeks across 50,000 acres. It has already destroyed many homes, and is threatening scores more, although most of the damage has been to timberland and swamp.
The Sweat Farm Road blaze has nearly merged with the Big Turnaround Complex fire, which has burned more than 26,000 acres.
Fire fighters say there is no end in sight to these fires. The best news would be an extended period of rain. But as this Drought Monitor Map shows quite clearly, southeast Georgia is suffering through a period of extreme drought. The woods are tinder dry. Dare we wish them an early tropical storm? Here's a story on the grim fire weather outlook.
The direction the smoke takes is dependent on the wind direction, of course. Here's a photo taken yesterday by NASA's Aqua Earth-observing satellite. A pair of shots made the day before shows the smoke plume blowing out over the Atlantic.
