HORRY COUNTY, SC (WMBF) The South Carolina Forestry Commission continues to hold a Red Flag fire alert for Horry County and the Pee Dee as dry and windy conditions increase throughout the weekend.
"Human behavior, weather conditions, and fuel moisture all combine to create a severe weather hazard," said Scott Hawkins with the Forestry Commission. Hawkins and other fire officials say they've caught a lucky break when it comes to fire outbreaks, though. No major brush fires have been reported throughout the area.
Firefighters say they're mainly monitoring "hot spots" from previously extinguished fires, making sure they don't flare up again. With conditions getting windier, they say they'll expect similar calls throughout the area.
Despite some rainfall, the U.S. Drought Monitor has Horry County in a severe to extreme drought, and cooler temperatures are doing little to help the situation.
"Our fire season is typically late winter to early spring," Hawkins says. "It's a cooler time of year, but our main criteria are the humidity and what impact that has on the fuel moisture."
In Horry County, burning debris under a Red Flag alert isn't necessarily illegal, but not calling the Forestry Commission before starting that burn is.
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