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ASHEBORO -- Authorities say they expect crews to complete the job sometime Monday of bringing a wildfire under control in the Uwharrie National Forest, northeast of Charlotte.
As of Monday morning, the fire had burned 73 acres in the forest. The blaze broke out sometime around 7 p.m. Saturday and was spread quickly by strong gusty winds and very low humidity.
Much of the fire was centered in the Birkhead Wilderness area, in the northern part of the forest. That is about 6 miles southwest of Asheboro. No buildings were damaged.
U.S. Forest Service officials said the blaze was 70 percent under control Monday morning. About 80 percent of the fire area was inside the national forest, and the remainder was on private property.
Firefighters are getting a break Monday, with winds much calmer than the past two days. The U.S. Forest Service is using a helicopter to dump water on the blaze, and crews from about a half-dozen fire departments are battling the blaze from the ground.
Forest Service officials say the Birkhead Wilderness area, including the trails, remains closed for now. But they expect no longterm adverse effects from the fire.
