The Carolina Forest-area fire that was first reported on March 1 is still an active incident, with frequent reports of smoke and sometimes flames on the fire ground.

Horry County Fire Rescue crews dedicated to this incident continue to respond these reports immediately, and to this point, have found all flare-ups and origins of highly visible smoke to exist within the black, contained areas. Often a small flare-up finds a contained, unburned area and lights off, producing highly visible smoke or flames, which prompt calls to 911 for investigation and response.

Crews will continue to respond to these calls, and we do encourage anyone seeing a significant of smoke or flare-ups to report this by calling 911, but do note: if you see smoke in and around the Carolina Forest area—even outside this area, depending on wind and atmospheric conditions—it is most likely the now-90-percent contained Carolina Forest-area fire, which covers 2,059 acres, as reported by the South Carolina Forestry Commission.

This smoke may be heavy, and low-hanging many mornings, especially around the Carolina Forest Boulevard, Highway 90, Highway 501 and International Drive areas.

Unfortunately, this will remain common for an undetermined amount of time, likely until this region is blanketed with heavy precipitation for a long duration, as the persistent hot spots exist well under the ground's surface, essentially untouchable by water sprayed from hoses and sprinklers. Only heavy, pooled, massive amounts of water on the ground will work for extinguishment.

Nearly two months into this incident, this is not the news we would like to be sharing, and we sincerely appreciate the residents and guests of the Carolina Forest area, and Horry County as a whole, for understanding the reality of this wildfire and its effects on the area.

At the time of this posting, on Thursday, April 24, 8 a.m., Horry County has a burn ban in place on all open burning in the unincorporated areas of the County. Because HCFR is dedicating resources and staff to the Carolina Forest-area wildfire, and have been averaging more than 250 dispatched calls each day, keeping our crews extremely busy, the last thing we need is another large scale incident, like a wildfire, because someone was illegally burning during a ban.

Do not engage in any open burning until the ban has been lifted.

To check the immediate status of the burn ban, visit: https://www.horrycountysc.gov/departments/fire-rescue/.

To learn more about lawful open burning in Horry County, when that is allowed again, visit our Open Burning Guide here: https://www.horrycountysc.gov/departments/fire-rescue/open-burning/.

Again, we appreciate the public's understanding in regard to the persistent Carolina Forest-area wildfire.