Wildfire — Horry, South Carolina

2009-04-22 to 2009-04-28 · Horry, South Carolina

$40.0M

Property damage

Event narrative

A wildfire began on Woodland Drive, 8 miles east of Conway near Hwy 90. The fire spread to the east, and eventually to the northeast, briefly jumping Hwy 31 and also Hwy 22. The South Carolina governor declared a state of emergency for Horry County on April 23rd, activating more personnel and agencies to deal with the fire. A total of 19600 acres burned before the fire was contained on April 28th. Approximately 2500 people were evacuated, and a total of 76 homes were destroyed and at least another 100 damaged, mostly in the Barefoot Resort area in North Myrtle Beach. Dense smoke affected the region for about a week. Of the 40 million total in damages 25 million was attributed to structures and 15 million estimated for woodland loss by SC forestry.

Wider weather episode

Dry windy conditions aided a large wildfire that burned a good portion of the Barefoot Resort.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 167193. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.