Wildfire Threatens Homes Near South Mountains State Park

MORGANTON, NC – Fire crews are working around the clock to contain a wildfire near South Mountains State Park. It is now threatening homes in the Bob’s Knob area.

“Ya ever see pictures of hell burning? That’s what it looked like!” says Lisa Smith.

She and her husband Tim didn’t evacuate their home on Bobs Knob Road in Morganton Tuesday night.

Wednesday firefighters continued pushing back the flames that came uncomfortably close to their front door.

“The fire was coming right down the mountain. It come all the way down to right there at the road,” Tim Smith explains.

The Chestnut Knob fire is 30 percent contained but now reaches nearly 6,000 acres, pushing it outside South Mountain State Park and threatening nearby homes.

“We’ve increased resources quite a bit. Make sure we have eyes on the ground in that area,” says Ludie Bond, with the Florida Forest Service.

She traveled to Morganton to help coordinate efforts and says firefighters are having success moving the fire away from homes.

A front coming through this weekend could change things though.

“Knowing that we’re going to have very gusty winds, the fire could potentially push against our Containment lines. They’re spending all of this time widening and securing those Containment lines,” Bond says.

Meanwhile the community is coming together to support firefighters from across the state and the country.

Donations poured into Foothills Higher Education Center near the base of the mountains.

“We live in the community and we want to do what we can to give back,” explains volunteer John Carpenter.