Wildfire danger high across Georgia Sunday

Fire danger is elevated across much of Georgia today, stretching from the north Georgia mountains to the coast, due to dry air and dry vegetation.

What’s Happening: The National Weather Service has issued Special Weather Statements for large parts of the state warning of elevated wildfire risk. The warnings cover two broad regions: north Georgia and the coastal southeast.

Affected Georgia counties include:

• North Georgia: Dade, Walker, Catoosa, Whitfield, Murray, Fannin, Gilmer, Union, Towns, Chattooga, Gordon, Pickens, Dawson, Lumpkin, White, Floyd, Bartow, Cherokee, Forsyth, Hall, Banks, Jackson, Madison, Polk, Paulding, Cobb, North Fulton, Gwinnett, Barrow, Clarke, Oconee, Oglethorpe, Wilkes, DeKalb, Walton, Morgan, Greene, Taliaferro, and Warren
• Coastal and southeast Georgia: Jenkins, Screven, Candler, Bulloch, Effingham, Tattnall, Evans, Bryan, Chatham, Long, Liberty, and McIntosh

What’s Important: In north Georgia, humidity is expected to fall to 30 percent or lower for at least four hours. Winds are forecast at 8 to 13 mph with gusts reaching 20 mph. Along the coast, winds will shift from northeast to east this afternoon and gust up to 20 mph, though humidity near the beaches will stay higher than inland.

How This Affects Real People: Residents in affected counties should check with local burn permitting authorities before starting any outdoor fire. Authorities are urging extreme caution for anyone who does burn.

The Path Forward: The coastal statement expires at 2:30 p.m. today. The north Georgia statement runs until 7 p.m. Dangerous conditions are expected to continue through the evening.