Atlanta —
Sixty Georgia Forestry Commission firefighters are out west on the fire lines, including Washington State.
More than 250 wildfires are burning in at least five states.
The Georgia firefighters volunteer for this dangerous duty and there’s no shortage of firefighters, men and women willing to go.
GFC’s Frank Sorrells says the firefighters are part of 20 person crews and are http://www.wsbradio.com/news/news/state-regional/georgia-firefighters-head-west-battle-wildfires/nnNLw/doing everything from fighting fires by hand to managing the firefighting effort.
The firefighters who go are well trained, well equipped, on call and can be on scene of a wildfire in 48 hours.
Sorrells expects additional GFC firefighters to make the trip to help out.
According to the AP, the National Weather Service issued a red flag warning for the eastern portion of the state until 5 p.m. Friday. Officials said temperatures will climb above 90 degrees and relative humidity will drop as low as 14 percent.
Drought and heat have combined to make this fire season one of the most active in the United States in recent years. The Georgia firefighters have joined the nearly 29,000 firefighters who are battling some 100 large blazes across the West, including in Idaho, Oregon, Montana, Washington and California.
The AP also reports a tragedy during the fire. Three firefighters died Wednesday after their vehicle crashed and was likely caught by flames.
“The firefighters were engaged in initial attack operations and were involved in a vehicle accident when it is believed that the fire overtook the vehicle,” said the statement from Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest.
The Associated Press contributed to this story
