Thousands of South Carolina residents have been told to leave their homes as a wildfire, believed to cover at least 1,200 acres, rages on. Governor Henry McMaster has declared a State of Emergency to bolster the response to the scorching fires.
A ban on outdoor burning is in place until further notice. “This State of Emergency ensures that our first responders, who are working tirelessly and risking their lives to protect our communities from these wildfires, have the resources they need,” Governor Henry McMaster stated.
“Dangerous wildfire conditions require that a statewide burning ban remain in effect until further notice. Those who violate this ban will be subject to criminal prosecution.”
The State Fire Marshal reports that over 175 wildfires are being fought, affecting around 4,200 acres, especially in Horry, Spartanburg, Oconee, Union, and Pickens Counties.
These fires are largely due to arid and windy conditions. On March 1, 2025, the South Carolina Forestry Commission issued a State Forester’s Burning Ban for all counties, prohibiting all forms of outdoor burning, from yard waste to campfires.
“While a majority of the current wildfire activity is concentrated in the Pee Dee region, the rest of the state is experiencing a dramatic uptick in wildfires, straining the capacity of Forestry Commission firefighters and local emergency response personnel to respond,” said Darryl Jones, Forest Protection Chief for the South Carolina Forestry Commission.
South Carolinians are urged to stay informed through official emergency sources and dial 911 to report any immediate threats, reports the Mirror US.
Meanwhile, Trump hit the golf course at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday.
This comes as President Donald Trump’s administration delays funding for wildfire mitigation projects funded through legislation championed by his Democratic predecessor, threatening efforts to prevent catastrophic fires like those that recently devastated Southern California.
The decision contradicts Trump’s repeated insistence that communities need to clear combustible materials like fallen branches and undergrowth—”It’s called management of the floor,” he stated during a visit to Los Angeles last month—to protect against wildfires.
In response to the LA wildfires, the president ordered the Army Corps of Engineers to release billions of gallons of water from two reservoirs in California’s Central Valley, more than 100 miles from the fire zones.
Trump claimed California withheld water supplies that could have helped fight the flames. California Gov. Gavin Newsom and other officials disputed those claims.
California Sen. Adam Schiff, a Democrat, said the release of the water also presented a risk of flooding.
“I think even the water managers got only a short bit of notice to say, ‘Please don’t. You can’t do that. That’s way too much water,'” he said. “And frankly, had they not talked the Army Corps off the ledge, there would’ve been serious flooding. It would have been an even bigger problem.”
Source : https://www.irishstar.com/news/us-news/south-carolina-declares-state-emergency-34781628
