*Massive GA wildfire 'long-term battle'*

More than 90,000 acres burned.

BY P.J. HELLER |WAYCROSS, Ga. | May 4, 2007

More than 900 firefighters battled a massive wildfire in southeast
Georgia for a 18th day on Thursday. Officials were also investigating at
least six other area fires suspected to be arson.

The largest of the wildfires in Ware County had consumed more than
90,000 acres – approximately 142 square miles - of forest and swamp land
as of Tuesday night.

Mandatory evacuations were ordered in a rural area of Charlton County
with suggested evacuations within a five-mile radius outside that
location. Some 75 homes were threatened, officials said.

The Ware County fire was about 75 percent contained as of late Tuesday
night but officials cautioned the public that the effort to put out the
flames was a "long-term battle."

"It's going to take a while," said spokesman Mike King of the Charlton
County Sheriff's Department.

The fire in the drought-stricken state was burning through tinder-dry
land. Weather conditions continued to be unfavorable, with low humidity
and temperatures in the 90s. Winds were lighter than in previous days. A
slight chance of rain was forecast for Friday night and Saturday night.

"It's not looking good," King said of the forecast. "The weather is
basically going to determine the longevity of this thing. We just have
to go from there."

Containment, originally estimated to occur Monday, has been pushed back
to May 15. The cost of battling the inferno so far was estimated at $18
million. The fire has burned at least 21 homes, 18 of them in Ware
County and three in Atkinson County, King said. No deaths or serious
injuries have been reported.

Other fires were burning in neighboring Brantley, Charlton and Atkinson
counties. Officials said some fires in Charlton and Ware counties were
suspicious and may have been deliberately set. Arson investigations were
ordered. King said the figure of 87,000 acres burned in Ware County
included acreage blackened in Charlton County.

The Atkinson County fire, about 20 miles west of the main blaze, had
grown to 5,000 acres. It was in the Roundabout Swamp, a peat bog which
can burn deep into the ground making it difficult to extinguish.

Initial published reports said all state roads in Atkinson County were
closed Tuesday, as were schools. That information was erroneous King
said, noting that only a portion of U.S. 82 would be closed Tuesday
night and that schools were open. The closures were reported all day on
the Joint Information Center's Web site as well as published and
broadcast elsewhere.

The Joint Information Center said the fires were unrelated "but are
further evidence of the extreme drought conditions in Georgia right now."

Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue visited the area Tuesday afternoon and met
with officials from the Georgia Forestry Commission and the Georgia
Emergency Management Agency.

Several roads remained closed, including a 16-mile stretch of U.S. 1
between Ware and Charlton counties. Several other roads in Ware,
Brantley and Charlton counties were also closed.

School officials in Ware County said schools would be closed Wednesday.
In Pierce County, school openings were to be delayed by one hour on
Wednesday and Thursday; Friday was a scheduled holiday for students.
Public schools in Coffee County, as well as South Georgia College in
Douglas, were also scheduled to be closed Wednesday due to heavy smoke
and limited visibility.

Smoke from the fires has drifted as far south as central Florida,
including the Orlando area, the National Weather Service reported.
Officials warned people with respiratory ailments to remain indoors.

The Ware County fire was sparked April 16 when a tree fell on a power
line. Since then, the fire has raged and burned into the Okefenokee
Swamp, where it has charred at least 17,000 acres. Officials said the
swamp was a fire-dependent ecosystem and would ultimately benefit from
the fire there.

The Kneeknocker fire in Brantley County has burned 1,400 acres and was
50 percent contained. Two smaller fires were also burning in the county.