Bugaboo Scrub Fire

Last updated
Bugaboo Fire
Bugaboo forest fire.jpg
The Bugaboo Fire rages out of control in Lake City, Florida.
Location Georgia and Florida
Statistics
Date(s)April 2007 – June 2007

The Bugaboo Fire was a wildfire that helped feed one of the largest fires in Georgia history. It raged from April to June 2007 and ultimately merged with other fires becoming the largest fire in the history of both Georgia and Florida. The Bugaboo, which was not actually named until it had blazed for nearly a month, started in the Okefenokee Swamp, most of which is located in Georgia. It merged with the Sweat Farm Road Fire creating the largest south GA fire in documented history. It was the culmination of several converging fires.

Contents

Georgia

On April 16, a downed power line started the Sweat Farm Road fire southwest of Waycross. When it entered the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge on April 21, it was renamed Big Turnaround. Close by, the Bugaboo fire was ignited by lightning on May 5. By May 20, the fires converged and became the Georgia Bay Complex - one of the largest fires in the South and the nation. [1]

This fire started when a tree fell on a power line on April 16, during high winds (caused by the April 2007 nor'easter and a strong high-pressure system), and low humidity along with drought conditions. By April 30, it had burned about 80,000 acres (320 km²)—about 20% of which was in the refuge—and had also destroyed 22 homes, and forced the evacuations of over 1,000 people. A fire break 12 miles (19 km) long was bulldozed through the pine forest to protect the city of Waycross, but there were breaches of the line. The governor of Georgia made a disaster declaration, making Ware and Brantley counties eligible for government aid.

Smoke closed several roads in the area, including U.S. 1.

By May 9, the main fire had consumed over 116,000 acres (469 km²), mainly south of Waycross, east of Fargo and west of Folkston in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. Many cities were threatened, but were never under siege. Subtropical Storm Andrea—which some had hoped might bring relief—apparently exacerbated the situation, as it drove strong winds into the fire but brought very little rain. These winds may have been the reason that the fire then blew across the border into northeast Florida.

Florida

On May 8, the Bugaboo fire was started by lightning at Bugaboo Island in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, and soon crept over the state line into Florida (and hence became the retronymed Bugaboo Scrub fire). It expanded extraordinarily quickly, combining with other fires that were already blazing in Georgia, and by May 16 had grown to 120,000 acres (490 km²). By May 22 it had burned 475,000 acres (1,920 km²) in Georgia and Florida. By the end of May 564,450 acres (2,300 km2) had burned. The Florida Folk Festival, the nation's oldest continuous festival, was cancelled for the first time because of the fire. (It was later re-scheduled for November.)

The major fire which entered from Georgia caused closures of Interstate 75 from the state line (and at times as far north as Valdosta) to Interstate 10. I-10 also had sections closed as well, sometimes as long as 40 mile (65 km). The detour by the Georgia State Patrol and Florida Highway Patrol doubled the distance to travel between Valdosta and Gainesville (from 90 miles (145 km) to 180) and tripled the time normally required to make the trip.

Hundreds were evacuated from homes in Columbia County, Florida late on May 10, and a state of emergency was declared.

The reach of the smoke

During the time these fires were burning, thick, sooty smoke blanketed the city of Jacksonville, Florida and the entire area of northeast Florida and southeast Georgia for many days. At times, the smoke reduced visibility to under a quarter of a mile and caused many health concerns.

On May 22, 2007, from southern Georgia to Metro Atlanta, residents awoke to a blanket of smoke across the horizon. A strong smoke smell was very clear, and there were reports of people with irritated eyes, noses, and lungs. Some people with asthma were rushed to hospitals as a result of the smoke.

Smoke at times reduced visibility as far south as central Florida, [2] and was even blown all the way down to Fort Lauderdale in south Florida, putting the local air quality index in the unhealthy range. [3] Smoke later drifted across southern Alabama and even to Meridian, Mississippi. [4]

By June 22, the wildfires in Georgia were largely contained. The containment came after beneficial, heavy rain blanketed the region from Tropical Storm Barry in June 2007.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ware County, Georgia</span> County in Georgia, United States

Ware County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 36,251. The county seat and only incorporated place is Waycross.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fargo, Georgia</span> City in Georgia, United States

Fargo is a city in Clinch County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 250. Formerly a town, it was incorporated by the Georgia state legislature in 1992, effective on April 1 of that year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valdosta, Georgia</span> City in Georgia, United States

Valdosta is a city in and the county seat of Lowndes County, Georgia, United States. As of 2019, Valdosta had an estimated population of 56,457.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waycross, Georgia</span> City in Georgia, USA

Waycross is the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Ware County in the U.S. state of Georgia. The population was 14,725 at the 2010 Census and dropped to 13,942 in the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Okefenokee Swamp</span> Wetlands in Florida and Georgia, USA

The Okefenokee Swamp is a shallow, 438,000-acre (177,000 ha), peat-filled wetland straddling the Georgia–Florida line in the United States. A majority of the swamp is protected by the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and the Okefenokee Wilderness. The Okefenokee Swamp is considered to be one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Georgia and is the largest "blackwater" swamp in North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wiregrass (region)</span> Area of the southeastern United States

The Wiregrass region, also known as the Wiregrass plains or Wiregrass country, is an area of the Southern United States encompassing parts of southern Georgia, southeastern Alabama, and the Florida Panhandle. The region is named for the native Aristida stricta, commonly known as wiregrass due to its texture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge</span> Nature center in Folkston, Georgia, USA

The Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge is a 402,000‑acre (1,627 km2) National Wildlife Refuge located in Charlton, Ware, and Clinch Counties of Georgia, and Baker County in Florida, United States. The refuge is administered from offices in Folkston, Georgia. The refuge was established in 1937 to protect a majority of the 438,000 acre (1,772 km2) Okefenokee Swamp. The name "Okefenokee" is a Native American word meaning "trembling earth."

Chesser Island is an island in the Okefenokee Swamp which is a protected part of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Okefenokee Wilderness</span>

Okefenokee Wilderness is a 353,981 acre (1,432.5 km2) U.S. Wilderness Area located in southeastern Georgia in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. It was established and governed under the Wilderness Act of 1974 when 343,850 acres (1,391.5 km2) were designated as wilderness by Public Law 93-429. The wilderness area is located entirely within the state of Georgia, even though small parts of Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and Okefenokee Swamp both extend southward into the state of Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">U.S. Route 84 in Georgia</span>

U.S. Route 84 (US 84) is a 258-mile-long (415 km) U.S. Highway in the U.S. state of Georgia, is also signed as State Route 38 for its entire length in Georgia. After entering Georgia from Alabama west-northwest of Jakin, the highway travels through the southern portion of the state, meeting its eastern terminus at Interstate 95 (I-95) east of Midway. US 84 through Georgia is also known as the Wiregrass Georgia Parkway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Georgia State Route 94</span> State highway in Georgia

State Route 94 (SR 94) is a 65.2-mile-long (104.9 km) state highway in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. It exists in two distinct sections, split by the Florida state line, traveling west–east within portions of Lowndes, Echols, Clinch, and Charlton counties. It connects U.S. Route 41 (US 41) in Valdosta with Saint George, via Statenville, Needmore, and Fargo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shanta Creek Wildfire</span> Lightning caused forest fire in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge

The Shanta Creek Wildfire was a lightning caused forest fire that started on June 29, 2009 in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge on the Kenai Peninsula of Alaska. More than 13,000 acres were burned and over 400 personnel were involved in the firefighting effort.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Okefenokee Swamp Park</span>

Okefenokee Swamp Park is located 12 miles south of Waycross, Georgia, United States. The park is accessed by taking the Vereen Bell Memorial Highway to the southern side of the Cowhouse Island. This is the northernmost entry point to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. The Okefenokee Swamp is the most extensive blackwater swamp in North America and covers over 438,000 acres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Honey Prairie Fire</span>

The Honey Prairie Fire was a 2011 wildfire that burned 309,200 acres (1,251 km2) of primarily scrub and brush in the Okefenokee Swamp are of southern Georgia. Because fire restores the prairie ecosystem, fire managers in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge allowed the fire to burn. Fire fighters worked to preserve structures and keep the fire within the refuge rather than contain the flames.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Georgia State Route 177</span> State highway in Georgia, United States

State Route 177 (SR 177) is a 29.5-mile (47.5 km) state highway in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. It exists in two distinct sections, split by the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, Okefenokee Swamp, and Okefenokee Wilderness, that travels south-to-north through portions of Clinch, Ware, Charlton, and Brantley counties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John M. Bethea State Forest</span> State forest in Florida, United States

John M. Bethea State Forest is a 37,736-acre state forest in Sanderson, Florida, in northern Baker County near the Florida/Georgia border. It provides a wildlife corridor between the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and the Osceola National Forest. The area was acquired by the State of Florida in 2001, and was named after a member of the forestry department who served between 1970 and 1987.

The Jesup Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in Georgia. The line runs from Jesup, Georgia to Folkston, Georgia for a length of 72.7 miles. It notable passes through Waycross, Georgia, a major CSX freight terminal and CSX operates numerous freight trains over the line. The Jesup Subdivision was once a major route for the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, one of CSX's predecessors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dixon Memorial State Forest</span> State forest in Georgia, United States

Dixon Memorial State Forest is a state forest in Brantley and Ware counties, located 10 miles southeast of Waycross, Georgia bordered by the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge to the south. The forest is approximately 35,000 acres and is the largest state forest owned and managed by the Georgia Forestry Commission. The forest is mostly made up of pine plantations consisting of slash pine, longleaf pine, and loblolly pine as well as wetlands consisting of pondcypress, swamp blackgum, sweetbay magnolia, loblolly bay, and other various hardwoods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swan Lake Fire</span> 2019 wildfire in the American state of Alaska

The Swan Lake Fire was a large lightning-caused wildfire that burnt between Sterling and Cooper Landing on the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska from June 5, 2019, until the autumn of that year. In total, the fire burned approximately 170,000 acres.

The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad's Waycross—Montgomery Line was one of the company's secondary main lines running from Waycross, Georgia west to Montgomery, Alabama, a distance of over 300 miles. It was built in the late 1800s by the Atlantic Coast Line's predecessor companies. The line is still in service today and is now the Thomasville Subdivision and Dothan Subdivision of CSX Transportation, the Atlantic Coast Line's successor company through various mergers.

References

  1. ↑ "The Historic Georgia Wildfires" (PDF). Georgia Forestry Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-10-06. Retrieved 2011-03-25.
  2. ↑ "Smoke From Ga. Fire Blankets Central Fla., Prompts Flood Of 911 Calls". Local 6. Archived from the original on 2007-05-03. Retrieved 2007-04-30.
  3. ↑ Kaye, Ken (10 May 2007). "Health warnings posted in Broward as smoky haze lingers until weekend". South Florida Sun Sentinel. Archived from the original on 13 May 2007. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  4. ↑ Wildfire Smoke Drifts Across State Lines

31°11′28″N82°30′36″W / 31.191°N 82.510°W / 31.191; -82.510

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.