Stokes County wildfire burns 276 acres, 95 percent contained

By Michelle Kennedy, Joshua Davis, Rebecca Smith, and JD Franklin III

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    STOKES COUNTY, North Carolina (WXII) — Crews throughout the Piedmont are continuing to battle a large wildfire, according to officials with the Northeast Stokes Fire and Rescue.

At this time, the North Carolina Forest Service said the wildfire burned 276 acres and is 95 percent contained.

Crews throughout the Piedmont are continuing to battle a large wildfire, according to officials with the Northeast Stokes Fire and Rescue.

At this time, officials said the wildfire burned 276 acres and is 50 percent contained.

According to Fire Chief Ryan Clark, crews from Stokes, Rockingham, and Guilford counties are on scene aiding with suppression efforts. The North Carolina Forestry also has a 15-man crew with a dozer and scout plane.

Officials told WXII that the Sunday weather conditions continue to be a problem and are expected to hamper efforts throughout the day. Chief Clark said efforts will concentrate on strengthening fire lines and extinguishing areas close to the dozer lines. Goinstown School Road remains closed at this time.

Despite rain projected in the forecast, Stokes County Ranger Jonathan Young said it’s not expected to do much to put out the fire.

“We’re still going to be here monitoring this fire and still putting out hot spots tomorrow,” he said. “So yeah, we’ll get a slight respite tomorrow, but we’ll be right back at it, probably on Tuesday.”

Several residents along Goins School Road between Sandy Ridge and Ayersville were evacuated for fear that flames from a wildfire would reach their homes. A large fire in a wooded area that spans more than 80 acres was burning and spreading near the Stokes and Rockingham county border through late Saturday night. The fire was expanding in size until the winds began to relax late evening according to firefighters with Northeast Stokes Fire and Rescue.

The data displayed above comes from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor on NASA satellites and the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS).

Northeast Stokes Fire and Rescue Fire Chief Ryan Clark said the fire was reported on Saturday afternoon at 2:35 p.m.

Crews said several fire units from multiple counties along with North Carolina Forest Service firefighters worked to contain the fire.

Officials with the Stokes County Communications Department told WXII that the fire was reported in the area of Goins School Road and Bennett Road.

Officials are asking you to avoid the area at this time.

The North Carolina Forest Service has issued a burn ban for all 100 counties in the state due to hazardous fire conditions.

The Forest Service said it includes a ban on all open burning until further notice. State officials said they’re also canceling all burning permits statewide.

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