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PLEASE BE AWARE: Wildland fire engines and large equipment will continue to be on roads in the fire area and traveling to and from assignments on US Hwy 70 between Havelock and New Bern.  

Please slow down and use caution when driving near them.  

Weather: High pressure slowly moves offshore tonight allowing the South Easterly winds this evening to shift to a South Westerly direction Friday. Winds may not be strong, but may have periods of gusty winds Friday afternoon and early evening. A cold front coming through the area Saturday and Sunday will bring an increased risk for rain and thunderstorms starting Saturday evening and continuing into early next week. Winds will also shift Sunday to the West, then North Easterly Saturday night into Sunday morning. 

Acreage: 32,400 acres; Containment: 85%; Personnel and Equipment: 182 total personnel; 1 helicopter, 10 engines, 2 water tenders, 2 Type-2 and 5 Type-3 tractor plow units, 2 drones, 2 track-mounted engines and 1 ambulance.  

Yesterday: crews monitored fire activity to identify hot spots and areas of concern and moped up any close to the fireline. Flooding operations for areas of ground fire, and additional piping and pumping continued.  

Today: Aviation and ground resources will continue to monitor fire activity to identify hot spots and areas of concern. Mop up operations with engines, crews, and heavy equipment continue on the north end and southwest portion of the fire.  Work on contingency lines in in the northwest portion of the fire are completed and will move to the northern portion tomorrow. Flooding operations for areas of ground fire in the southeastern portion  of the fire continues and pumps will continue to flood areas in the south and southeast portion of the fire. Preparations for additional piping and placement of pumps to flood areas in the southwest portion of the fire will continue.  

• Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR): A “TFR” is in place effective May 9, 2023 from 6 AM to 2 PM local time, and altitude from the surface up to and including 1000 feet, daily until further notice, to allow for safe operations of the drone equipped with infrared to detect heat sources. The lower ceiling than the TFR last week is in consideration of Military flights out of Cherry Point. Complete information is at https://tfr.faa.gov/save_pages/detail_3_2893.html 

• Closures: The road closures on Forest Service Road 203 (Holston Creek Road) and Black Swamp Road remain in effect. Updates to road closures surrounding the fire are at https://drivenc.gov/.    

• Air quality: Information on current air quality data for North Carolina is at https://www.airnow.gov/.   

• Firewise: Information on preparing your home and property to reduce the risk from fire can be found at https://www.nfpa.org/Public-Education/Fire-causes-and-risks/Wildfire/Firewise-USA  

• Donations: Those interested in donating to firefighters, please consider assisting your local fire departments and /or the Wildland Firefighter Foundation https://wffoundation.org