South Carolina declares state of emergency in the wake of wildfires in the Carolinas and Georgia

South Carolina declared a state of emergency in recent hours to address the wildfires that spread across the state over the weekend and continued into Monday, also impacting North Carolina and Georgia. Gov. Henry McMaster explained that the goal is to provide additional resources to first responders who "are working tirelessly and risking their lives to protect our communities from these wildfires."

Although by early Monday morning the total number of active fires had decreased to 160, authorities had counted over 175 active blazes when the emergency declaration was made on Sunday. The South Carolina Forestry Commission reported that by the first hours of the week, more than 5,400 acres had been burned.

The National Weather Service (NWS) in Columbia, a South Carolina city, had warned that "the combination of dry fuels & low humidity" created a cause for concern. The service forecast improved conditions for Tuesday, as a cold front is expected to arrive with showers.

Authorities issued evacuation orders for counties such as Horry and reiterated a message they've been emphasizing since last week: no open flames. The Forestry Commission has enforced an active burn ban statewide, an order that "prohibits all outdoor burning, including yard debris burning, prescribed burning, and campfires in all unincorporated areas of the state."

In addition to firefighters and other first responders, the South Carolina National Guard deployed three UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters to help assist in controlling the blaze:

Alarm in North Carolina and Georgia

The slogan "please don't burn today" was also heard throughout North Carolina. In its latest update, the state's Emergency Management Service reported there was a fire in Polk County, claiming that it had expanded to 500 acres. It urged asking the public to avoid the area.

"Additional out of county crews are working tonight and more will be here tomorrow to assist with the fire operations," reported  the county fire department. Evacuation orders were still in effect, they said, but would be reviewed throughout Monday.

An online tracking tool from the state forest service showed five active fires early Monday, though two of them were almost completely under control.

Meanwhile, authorities in Georgia announced they had had to respond to more than 130 wildfires. The NWS extended its fire danger declaration from the weekend into Monday afternoon.

"Low relative humidities and dry vegetation will result in hazardous fire weather conditions," they reported. "Outdoor burning is strongly discouraged." Adverse conditions are expected to persist throughout the week.