National Weather Service forecast for Gainesville
How to help
The Times will have its van sitting in front of the newspaper’s building from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday collecting supplies for Georgia Forestry Commission firefighters battling the wildfires. Anyone who wants to can bring items and “pack the van.” The Times will deliver the supplies to the Forestry Commission office. A forestry commission representative said the following items are needed:
• Bottled sports drinks
• Bottled water
• Hand sanitizer
• Ibuprofen
• Tylenol
• Prepackaged, single-serve, nonperishable, cookless meals or snacks
A change in the weather and direction of the winds brings relief this weekend to many North Georgians choking from smoke pouring from mountain wildfires in the last week.
But that same weather change has failed to bring welcome rain to ease the drought and help firefighters douse the remaining blazes.
The Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests reports about a dozen wildfires have burned an estimated 33,361 acres since Oct. 5. A fire ban remains in place throughout the forest.
Among the fires still burning are the Rock Mountain Fire in Rabun and Towns counties, 8,545 acres and 30 percent contained; the Timber Ridge Fire in Rabun County, 888 acres, 50 percent contained; the Rough Ridge Fire in Murray and Fannin counties in the Cohutta Wilderness, 23,759 acres, 30 percent contained; and Coopers Fire in Union County, 8 acres, 95 percent contained.
Meanwhile, the arriving front has brought winds of 20-25 mph, with gusts up to 45 mph, and a wind advisory to the area, potentially making firefighting more difficult. Yet the winds blowing from the west and south have helped keep the smoky conditions well north of Hall County and metro Atlanta for now.
The same weather system will bring cooler air, with temperatures dropping near freezing in some areas Saturday night. However, no rain is in the forecast.