Great Dismal Swamp Fire Extinguished
SUFFOLK, Va. (AP) -- A southeastern Virginia wildfire that burned in the Great Dismal Swamp for more than three months has been extinguished.
Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge officials surveyed the burn area on Friday and found no evidence of smoke. On Monday, an aerial reconnaissance flight confirmed those findings.
The fire was discovered on Aug. 4 after two separate lightning strikes. Smoke from the fire reached as far north as Maryland.
The fire consumed more than 6,500 acres and as much as five feet of peat soils. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service had up to 400 firefighters on scene over the course of the fire.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
