Tag: Wildfire

The content below has been tagged with the term “Wildfire.”

Articles

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  Fencing fire

  May 2, 2017 | 5 minute readThe Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge is aflame. As of Monday, May 1, fire had burned more than 100,000 acres. Firefighters from across the country have come to the refuge, operated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. They’ll likely be at the refuge, close to the Georgia-Florida line, for months. Learn more...

  Firefighter in the brush at Okefenokee NWR. Photo by Mark Davis, USFWS.

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  Keeping upbeat

  May 2, 2017 | 2 minute readFolkston, Georgia – If he needs a reminder of how to run a wildlife refuge – especially one that’s on fire – all Michael Lusk needs to do is look at the skull in his office. That’s an alligator skull, and it came from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (Service) Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. At one time, it was attached to a beast about 9 feet long. Propped in its gaping mouth is a narrow sign with a message: Learn more...

  Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge is closed as crews battle the West Mims fire. Photo by Mark Davis, USFWS.

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  Puerto Ricans bring fight to fire

  May 2, 2017 | 3 minute readFolkston, Georgia – Martin Ramos will always remember that call: “Report to the Okefenokee”. That was six years ago, when a fire rose to life in the middle of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and steadily grew. By the time the 2011 Honey Prairie fire had been extinguished, it had burned more than 300,000 acres. It also sparked an interest in Ramos, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) fire officer assigned to the Service’s Vieques NWR in Puerto Rico. Learn more...

  Martin Ramos of Vieques National Wildlife Refuge in Puerto Rico lends a hand at the West Mims fire. Photo by Mark Davis, USFWS.

News

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  Okefenokee reopens main entrance

  June 2, 2017 | 2 minute readFolkston, Georgia – Decreased fire activity will allow officials to partially reopen the Main Entrance to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge (Suwannee Canal Recreation Area) near Folkston on Friday, June 2. While the West Mims wildfire is still an active fire with 65% containment, fire officials and refuge staff have confidence that the public can access a portion of the visitor facilities at this time. Beginning Friday, the Main Entrance will be open during normal operational hours of 30 minutes before sunrise to 7:30 p. Read the full story...

  West Mims Wildfire at Okefenokee NWR. Photo by Josh O’Connor, USFWS.