Firefighters in Florida have recently been battling a series of wildfires. The three combined fires, which officials have named the Chipola Complex, have destroyed more than 33,000 acres of land. This same area was devastated by Hurricane Michael back in 2018 which was a Category 5 storm and hit five different states.
According to Florida Forest Service, much of the land that is burning “thick, dry, and dead trees and vegetation” that was still recovering from Hurricane Michael.
“It’s the storm that keeps on giving and giving,” Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said. “It’s like a ghost, we can’t get rid of the damn thing. If you look at the path of the storm that it has taken when it hit here in October of 2018, it’s the exact same path the fire is taking.”
The good news is that in the past week the panhandle has received rainfall, helping firefighters contain areas they were unable to get to. Certain parts west of Tallahassee have had more than four inches of rain.
“This is a living, breathing beast,” Brad Monroe, the chief of emergency services in Bay County, said Tuesday during a news conference. “When it produces its own weather, you see lightning strikes within a fire on a bright sunny day, it’s incredible. Words cannot describe it.”
The biggest fire in the Chipola Complex, the Bertha Swamp Road fire, has only been 20% contained as of Wednesday, according to a news release from the Florida Forest Service Official. They also mentioned the other two fires, the Adkins Avenue and Star Avenue fires, have destroyed 1,000 acres of land however are almost completely contained.
Rainfall and cooler temperatures in the area are expected to continue and hopefully distinguish some of the fire. There are approximately 70 tractor-plow units and 10 air assets working to suppress wildfires in the Chipola Complex.
Florida gov. Rob DeSantis said in a news conference on Tuesday that the state is working to help provide $6.1 million to families affected by the fires. DeSantis has also declared a state of emergency in Gulf, Bay, and Calhoun counties.
Marquie Peyton
Intern