InciWeb the Incident Information System: Evans Road

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INCIDENT UPDATED 8/7/2008

Approximate Location

35.62 latitude, -76.452 longitude

Incident Overview

For the Evans Road Fire, firefighters from around the country have packed their bags and set off to fight fire. Their basic needs of food and laundry service have been provided by volunteers from the North Carolina Baptist Men. This evening, the Evans Ro

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The Evans Road Fire was reported on June 1 approximately 15 miles NW of Fairfield in the New Lake vicinity in eastern North Carolina, several miles south of Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge on private land. The fire resulted from a lightning strike. On the afternoon of June 3, the fire broke from containment, running 3,000 acres onto Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. By late evening, the blaze had grown to approximately 8,000 acres. Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge is approximately 93,000-acres and is home to the endangered red wolf, black bear, hundreds of species of migratory birds, and a variety of other native wildlife. The refuge is a popular attraction for birders, wildlife photographers, as well as being a good hunting and fishing hot spot.

Windy weather and a limited water supply have complicated suppression efforts for firefighters. The fire is primarily burning in shrubby swamp lands which are very difficult to suppress in dry conditions due to the explosive fire movement through the shrubs and the large amounts of organic vegetation in the soil available to burn. The fire will likely linger for weeks in the soil until significant rainfall floods the swamp.

Basic Information

Incident Type	Wildland Fire
Cause	Lightning
Date of Origin	Sunday June 01st, 2008 aprox 12:00 PM
Location	15 miles NW of Fairfield and 7 miles S of Creswell in Hyde, Tyrrell, and Washington Counties, NC
Incident Commander	Robert Smith

Current Situation

Total Personnel	84
Size	40,704 acres
Percent Contained	100%
Fuels Involved	4 Chaparral (6 ft) Primary fuel model is model 4 (high pocosin), 12 medium slash now present as trees with burned out root systems are falling
Fire Behavior	No surface fire. Ground fire continues to burn in inaccessible pockets.
Significant Events	Rehabilitation groups continue to implement the recommendations in the Evans Road Fire Rehabilitation Plan for Repair of Fire Suppression Damage. Progress on repair of fire suppression damage has been significant today with a focus on seeding and mulching areas to protect water quality. Un-needed equipment is being demobilized and returned to home base. Fire records are being organized and prepared for transition. Excess resources continue to be demobilized. A transition plan is being finalized.

Outlook

Planned Actions	Make final preparations for transition to Type 3 team on Saturday. Close out ICP in Pantego. Continue to hold water in canals for another 2 to 4 weeks to allow water to seep into organic soil and maintain a high water table to take advantage of any rainfall received during the period.
Growth Potential	Low
Terrain Difficulty	Extreme
Remarks	The Evan's Road Fire can be expected to continue presenting suppression issues until the area receives significant rainfall. Air quality issues are not a concern at this time. A State of Emergency was issued for Hyde, Washington, and Tyrrell Counties, and has been in place since 6/6/08.