Amna Nawaz
@PBSNewsHour·5.3M subscribers·62.2K videos
Drought, high winds fuel fires in Georgia #shorts
Posted
April 28, 2026
Views
5,358
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334
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April 28, 2026
5,358
334
6.23%
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2:07Now PlayingTwo large wildfires have scorched more than 50,000 acres in southeastern Georgia, destroying more than a hundred homes.
The Highway 82 and Pineland Road fires are both in southern Georgia, not far from the border with Florida. In the last 10 days, they've destroyed more than 100 homes, forcing evacuations. One fire allegedly started when a foil party balloon hit a live power line; the other was ignited by sparks from a welding operation.
The fires are happening in areas affected by high winds and extreme drought. They're also littered with a large number of dead trees downed by 2024’s Hurricane Helene. In all, firefighters are battling more than 150 wildfires across Georgia and Florida.
Some rain over the weekend helped temporarily slow fire activity, allowing crews to make some progress, but both of the major fires in Georgia remain largely uncontained, the state’s forestry commission said Monday morning.
Georgia Governor Kemp earlier this month ordered a State of Emergency for 91 counties in response to the ongoing wildfires. He also enacted the first burn ban in the state’s history.
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