Black Bear Fire Update

Smoke was very heavy in the Cosby and Hartford areas earlier today. Conditions did improve in the Cosby area this afternoon. That smoke was due to the Black Bear fire burning on the state line near I-40. That fire was sparked by a tractor trailer accident Thursday morning near mile marker 3 in Haywood County NC on I-40. The fire quickly made its way up a ridge and grew to 150 acres, engulfing most of that area in smoke. Travel on I-40 Friday morning saw drivers making their way through smoke hanging over the roadway. Motorists traveling on I-40 are being urged to use caution when driving through the area near the state line. The Appalachian Trail is closed between I-40 and Max Patch because of the fire.

As of the last update from the US Forest Service, the fire has grown to 382 acres in size and is still 0% contained.

The Tweed fire north of Del Rio in both Cocke and Greene counties is also still burning. As of this morning it was still at 536 acres and was at 60% containment. The Cocke County sheriff’s office is reminding citizens that there is a burn ban in place. The sheriff’s office and other agencies are continuing to have to respond to small brush fires caused by someone burning leaves and other materials.

A burn ban is in place for Cocke County as well as Greene and Sevier Counties as well as most of the counties to our east in North Carolina.