Honey Prairie Complex June 20, 2011
Current acreage: 251,570 acres 60% contained
A public meeting is being held tonight, Monday, June 20th at 6:00pm
Charlton County Government Annex Auditorium 68 Kingsland Road, Folkston, GA
Fire personnel will be on hand to provide an update on the status of area fires.
Today, fire crews will continue burnout operations in many areas around the fire perimeter, including the area west of the Stephen C. Foster State Park and the area on the NE flank of the fire just south of the Sawfly and Racepond fires approximately 4 miles down the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge boundary to the Honey Prairie Fire as possible. Slow burnout operations in these areas have proven successful over the past couple of days, and will continue as necessary.
“It’s been tough holding this fire within the swamp,” said Incident Commander Mike Quesinberry. “We’re throwing everything at it we possibly can to keep it from moving onto private land. We’re getting more folks, engines and dozers in from all across the country to help us meet our goal.”
Work to protect the boardwalk at the State Park will continue and firefighters predict actions will be necessary over an extended period of time to accomplish this objective. Firefighters will also continue to monitor and patrol the area along the eastern boundary of the refuge for the foreseeable future. The firelines in this area continue to hold well.
A burnout conducted yesterday along the SW flank of the fire (SE of Fargo) near what is known locally as Turkey’s Nest went very well. Fire personnel will be mopping up and patrolling today in this area and some will be available to assist in other operations as necessary.
Smoke may continue to present problems in areas along the eastern side of the Okefenokee Refuge, and motorists are urged to drive with extreme caution. Persons with health issues should remain indoors as much as possible.
Unified Command: Blue Team Incident Commander Mike Quesinberry, Georgia Forestry Commission Incident Commander Troy Floyd, Florida Dept. of Forestry Incident Commander Mark Crow
Cooperators: Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, Georgia Forestry Commission, Florida Division of Forestry, U.S. Forest Service, Greater Okefenokee Association of Landowners (GOAL), Georgia Emergency Management Agency, Rayonier, Superior Pine, Langdale, GDOT, FLDOT, Georgia Aviation Authority, Brantley County Fire Department, Ware County Fire Department, Toledo Manufacturing Company.
Closures: The Suwannee Canal Recreation Area, including the Richard S. Bolt Visitor Center, Okefenokee Adventures, and all hiking trails at the refuge’s east entrance are closed until the immediate threat of fire is over. All public canoe camping, day use boating, and motorized boat use from the Suwannee Canal Recreation Area, at the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge East Entrance, are suspended. Kingfisher Landing is closed until further notice to all boating activities. Swamp Island Drive, including Chesser Island Homestead and Swamp Walk Boardwalk, at the Refuge’s east entrance, is closed until the threat of fire is over. Okefenokee Swamp Park, 912-283-0583, on Highway 177 is also closed at this time. Stephen C. Foster State Park and Highway 177 is closed. Current park information is available at 912-637-5274.
06-20-11
17:15 hrs