Southeast Georgia and Florida Wildfires Devastate Homes, History and Lives

On Tuesday a blaze named the Highway 82 Fire erupted in Brantley County, Georgia, while the nearby Pineland Road Fire spread. Within hours the flames consumed thousands, razed over 120 homes and dozens of structures, and forced hundreds to evacuate; by Friday about 4,000 homes remained in evacuation zone. Across the border, Old Dixie Highway Fire in Hilliard, Florida, killed a volunteer firefighter who suffered a medical emergency. State climatologists cite worst spring drought, and investigators suggest a balloon striking a power line as a possible ignition source, though unverified.

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The fire erased homes and memories. Brytney Quinn fled with her children, pets, saying her house had been destroyed. Elizabeth and Tony Spear left a 17-year home, heirloom jewelry and pets, noting they would have to start over. In Waynesville, Kathy Hendrix rescued county records and a storybook, warning insurance cannot replace history. Ginger Hunter saw her Wedding Chapel at Covenant Acres and wedding dresses turn to ash; the chapel had no insurance. Blazes claimed three pets from the Spears and left two cats and two dogs missing from the Hunters.

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Governor Brian Kemp said, “We got the two most dangerous, biggest problematic fires anywhere in the United States within really just a very small area that we’re having to fight.”

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Residents criticized the lack of insurance for historic records and the chapel, noting “insurance can’t replace this” and that the chapel had no coverage.

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Residents criticized the lack of insurance for historic records and the chapel, noting “insurance can’t replace this” and that the chapel had no coverage.

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Eyewitnesses saw a sky turning black with smoke. Drake Smith recalled, “It wasn’t panic until we saw the fire over the tree line,” while Bobbi Enke noted her father-in-law’s refusal to abandon his home, saying, “He wanted to stay back to protect what he could leave behind for his kids.” Local eateries—Rosa Cosco of Tacos Del Ranchito and Shelby Drummond of Shelby and Shane’s Country Cooking and Catering—provided free meals; volunteers kept searching for missing cats and dogs. Evacuation orders remain as officials monitor winds.

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• “My house is gone,” — Brytney Quinn, mother of two

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• “You have to leave, you have to go now,’ I said, ‘I’ve got to have 15 minutes to save the history of our county,’” Hendrix said.” — Kathy Hendrix, Waynesville resident

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• “We’ll make it through, you know – we’ve just got to start over.” — Elizabeth Spear, homeowner

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• “I am at a loss for words to describe my heart right now,” — Ginger Hunter, owner, Wedding Chapel at Covenant Acres

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