Myrtle Beach burning

[sarges46]

I know we have several members from SC and a couple in or near Myrtle Beach. I hope all is well with the terrible fires that are happening as we speak!

 

Hope you are able to check in.

[Venturous Randy]

OK, I will apologize before I even say it...

You think the Myrtle Beach biker rally guys set it on fire?

RandyA

Actually, I really feel for those folks down there.

[whanna]

After I made sure my friend's brother and father were OK (and their residences), my thought was (again, sorry in advance, same as Randy) - that mayor will do anything to keep the bikers out of town next month.

 

I really do hope they get that under control as soon as possible to prevent any more loss of property (or injuries). I've seen the results of those kinds of fires, jumping across an equivalent of 15 lanes of highway (in Florida/Georgia a number of years ago) - not a nice thought or result.

[tazmocycle]

yea it's bad out there. i lived there in the 70s and we had a huge fire between conway and mb, but then there wasn't any house or subdivision there like it's now. it was all pine forest owned by the paper co and it burned just about all of it down. i was thinking the same as randy too. my sister lives in florence, and when we visit her, we usally ride down to mb for a day or two. the southeast has been in a drought condition for the last few years, but lately we have been getting some good rains to help out. the rivers and lakes are filling back up to normal in al but i think ga and sc are still on the low side. there's been a huge fight between the states over the water rights and who should have authority over where the waters should go.

[barend]

Heard this afternoon the fire started with a guy burning yard debris just outside Conway (?) some ten miles from where they lost over 70 houses.

[autopilot]

The area for the most part is between Hwy 31 & Hwy 90 in one direction and between Hwy 22 and International drive in the the other direction. The worst hit by the fire is the Barefoot Resort Community (north & across the waterway from Briarcliff Mall. This is a fairly affluent subdivision/community; when developed, they were able to construct Barefoot Resort Drive Bridge, which starts across the waterway, connected to hwy 17)...lot of money, lot of retirees [among others]). International Dr. is an extension of Robert Grissom Pakwy, after it crosses the waterway. You can see the area clearly on Google Earth if interested. There have been many homes totally destroyed. In all the authorities say: homes destroyed-69, homes damaged- 100, approx. 20,000 acres burned. Those numbers for home damage are for the entire fire area, not just Barefoot Resort. No mention of any dollar estimates, that I have heard, but it will be dramatic, I'm sure!

 

There was a guy who had been burning without a permit on Sat. and it had spread to adjacent property. The authorities showed up, put it out and cited him for 2 violations. At the last update, the Forestry people said that the original fire must have burned underground for a day or two and that subsequent fire/restart is what sparked the big blaze. The ground cover through that whole area has been like tinder with attitude...the least puff of wind and it's off to the races; and as luck would have it, it's been windy.

 

Thankfully, We aren't anywhere close to that area, although my niece and her husband do live on the N/NW side of hwy 90 fairly close to the action. They have been safe thus far. I know we have a couple of members in and around North Myrtle and inland ( Longs community and Loris I know of for sure...there may be others). I would expect those areas to have issues with smoke as they would be downwind from the fire areas.

 

Watching local TV coverage of some of it has been tough. In most cases, the people have said that they literally had barely enough time to get every one into a vehicle and go before the fire got to the house. One guy said he didn't have enough time to go back and get his dog, so it was lost to the flames. On the 11:00 news, they showed people literally sifting and raking through the ashes of what had been their homes for anything they could salvage.

 

There haven't been any deaths though, thank the Lord and that is a miracle on it's own. The report is that they have it 80% contained....we'll see what the day brings.

 

Those so disposed, take the time for a little prayer that the weather cooperates, that they put it out soon, before any more people lose their homes, and for comfort for those who have. A little prayer of thanks and safety for the folks who have fought and continue to fight the fire, wouldn't hurt, either.

Edited April 25, 2009 by autopilot