Battle against Horry County blaze continues

NORTH MYRTLE BEACH - The battle against South Carolina's largest forest fire in 30 years continued Saturday as more than 100 firefighters in helicopters, bulldozers and fire trucks struggled to maintain the upper hand.

On the bright side, no more homes were lost Saturday, no one was injured, and the last time the fire jumped over a containment line was around 1 a.m. It soon was isolated after claiming only 50 additional acres. About 20,600 acres have burned so far.

Unpredictable winds, lingering sunny skies and low humidity mean it could take another day or two to fully contain the flames, and hundreds of homeowners - particularly those along S.C. Highway 90 - remain in a danger zone that measures roughly six miles by eight miles.

Horry County Forester Lois Edwards said she had no estimate of the vastness of the timber loss from the fire, which not the immediate concern.

"We are not out of the woods, and people need to be aware to stay on top of things," she said. "Just because you can't smell smoke doesn't mean that it's over."

The fire has claimed 76 homes since Thursday and done major damage to seven more. Another 89 have suffered minor damage, such as melted vinyl siding, and Horry County officials put the total property damage at $15.6 million.

Forestry Commission firefighter Nelson Wilson of Abbeville spent much of Saturday on his bulldozer, plowing under a 50-foot-wide strip of vegetation between the fire and the Carolina Forest subdivision.

Edwards said it's that sort of work that will beat back the fire by depriving it of vegetation to burn. A few miles away, Blackhawk helicopters dropped their 750-gallon buckets into a private pond every 10 minutes and then dumped water on one of several remaining hot spots.

The fire briefly threatened a water treatment plan east of Long Bay Road, but fire crews were able to keep it from harm. A few new roads reopened, while both shelters closed down. For most visitors to this tourism hot spot, the only sign of anything unusual would be a little smoke and traffic delays.

Meanwhile, those whose homes were claimed by the blaze continued to sift through the ashes.

Rick Schappell of Mullica Hill, N.J. previously planned to spend a four-day weekend here. Little did he know he would spend it surveying the ruins of his vacation home in Barefoot Resort.

He was able to find only a set of salt and pepper shakers in the ashes where his home once stood, but he did not seem sad.

"We love it here," he said Saturday. "That's why we're going to rebuild."

Schappell said he took heart not only in the absence of injury but in the outpouring of help from businesses and neighbors. He planned to meet with his insurance adjuster today and said he felt a sense of resolve.

"We know we can just continue on," he said. "I'm trying to work through the process of what the next step is now."

His neighbor, Jim Paradise of Solon, Ohio, inspected his devastated house, and then walked into the charred wetlands beyond his backyard. He noticed one spot of peak still smoldering, took out a water bottle and sprinkled it over the smoke.