Georgia wildfire destroys dozens of homes, spreads to more than 5,000 acres
(BRANTLEY COUNTY, Ga.) — Dry conditions from a persistent drought and gusty winds were fueling wildfires on Wednesday in the Southeast, including a blaze in Southeast Georgia that has destroyed dozens of homes and prompted evacuations.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency for 91 counties in South Georgia.
The wildfire in Brantley County, Georgia, grew from about 700 acres at 10 a.m. local time on Tuesday to 5,000 acres at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, County Manager Joey Carson said at a news conference on Wednesday.
“Obviously, this fire became a lot larger than we thought it would be on Monday. We’ve got resources that have come in from all over South Georgia and now from the state,” said Carson, adding that he expects more resources from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to arrive later Wednesday.
The fire, burning northwest of Brunswick, Georgia, was 10% contained on Wednesday morning, Chuck White, director of Emergency Management in neighboring Camden County, said at the news conference.
At least 47 homes have been destroyed by the blaze, which started on Monday off of U.S. Highway 82 near the Brantley County-Glynn County line, authorities noted.
Schools in Brantley County canceled classes on Wednesday due to the fire threat and smoke, officials said.
“This decision has been made to ensure the safety of our students, families, and employees, and to allow our Brantley County families time and space to navigate the impacts of the fire,” the local school system said in a statement.
On Tuesday, students and staff at two schools in the Brantley County town of Waynesville were forced to evacuate during the school day, officials said.
The Georgia Forestry Commission also issued its first mandatory burn ban in state history on Wednesday. The ban on outdoor burning, which will remain in effect for at least 30 days, is for 91 counties in the lower half of the state due to worsening drought conditions and rising wildfire activity, the agency said.
Carson noted that firefighters nearly had the Brantley County fire under control on Tuesday until afternoon wind gusts escalated the fire danger.
“Within 30 minutes, the winds picked up pretty significantly, and it went from being almost in control to a major wildfire,” Cason said. “Yesterday morning, we had 700 acres burned. It burned over 4,000 acres in a matter of hours as soon as the wind picked up.”
Persistent dry conditions have led to one of the worst droughts on record for parts of Georgia, fueling wildfires in the state.
According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, more than 48% of Brantley County is under an “Exceptional Drought” — the highest level of drought it has experienced in more than 25 years.
Across Georgia, more than 69% of the state is under an “Extreme Drought.” At the start of the year, only 1% of the state was under an “Extreme Drought” or higher.
Georgia needs between 12 and 18 inches of rainfall to end its current drought, according to data from the National Centers for Environmental Information.
Another major wildfire, the Pinelands Road Fire in nearby Clinch County, Georgia, started on Monday on mostly private forest land, officials said. It grew to 9,000 acres by Wednesday and was spreading toward Echols County, they noted.
In Florida, near the Georgia-Florida line, the Railroad Fire was burning in Clay and Putnam Counties, which are also under drought conditions. As of Wednesday morning, the Railroad Fire had grown to more than 4,000 acres and was more than 50% contained on Wednesday morning, according to the Florida Forest Service.
Across the Southeast — including Florida, Alabama, Georgia, South and North Carolina and Virginia — more than 97% of the region is under a “moderate drought” or higher.
Florida is experiencing its worst drought in 25 years. At least 71% of the state is under an “extreme” or “exceptional drought,” the two highest levels.
Fire alerts issued from Texas to Montana and Minnesota
Meanwhile, pockets of fire weather continue to linger in parts of the Rockies and Great Plains on Wednesday.
More than a dozen states across the Rockies and Plains from Texas to Montana and Minnesota are under fire weather alerts on Wednesday due to hot, dry and windy conditions.
Relative humidity in parts of the Rockies and Plains on Wednesday is expected to fall to as low as 5%, and wind gusts up to 30 to 45 mph are also forecast, allowing any wildfires to rapidly start and spread.
The wildfire threat is expected to continue Thursday in the Rockies and Plains as wind gusts are forecast to reach 60 mph and relative humidity is expected to be down to the single digits.
President Donald Trump speaks to the media before boarding Air Force One on March 13, 2026 at Joint Base Andrews, Md. Trump is traveling to Florida to spend the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago resort. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Several developments came out of Washington, D.C., regarding the war with Iran over the weekend as strikes continue across the Middle East and economic impacts are beginning to be felt domestically.
President Donald Trump and administration officials continued to comment on the timeline of the war, the possibility of a deal with Iran, securing the Strait of Hormuz and the release of oil reserves.
The administration has maintained that the U.S. is decimating Iranian forces and degrading their capabilities, but Iran continues to strike.
On Saturday, Trump said on social media, “We have already destroyed 100% of Iran’s Military capability,” and said the U.S. “will soon get the Hormuz Strait OPEN, SAFE, and FREE.”
Still, the administration has yet to comment on the deployment of Marines to the region, which was announced on Friday, and what their mission could entail.
Trump also faced backlash over the weekend after an affiliated political action committee sent a fundraising email, featuring a photo from the dignified transfer of the first six U.S. service members killed in the Iran war, while offering contributors access to “private national security briefings.”
ABC News has compiled a list of some of the latest developments as the war stretches into its third week.
Timeline
Questions continue to swirl about how long Trump wants the United States to be engaged in this war.
He spent the bulk of last week assuring Americans it would be over soon, hoping to ease market concerns, saying Iran is beaten. But on his way out of Washington Friday night, he refused to comment on how long it would continue. “As long as necessary,” Trump said.
On Sunday, Energy Secretary Chris Wright told ABC News’ Martha Raddatz, “I think that this conflict will certainly come to an end in the next few weeks. Could be sooner than that, but the conflict will come to the end in the next few weeks.”
In an interview with NBC, Wright also acknowledged, “Americans are feeling it [economic pain] right now and will feel it for a few more weeks.” But, he said, in the end, we will have removed the greatest threat to global energy supplies.
Securing the Strait
Officials, including Wright, also struggled over the weekend to explain the plans they had executed in anticipation that Iran would shut down the vital oil shipping lane in the Strait of Hormuz.
On Saturday, Trump called on other countries that depend on that commerce to help secure the strait, naming “China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and others.” He also suggested he’s received commitments from some of them, but from whom remains unknown. Democrats, critical of Trump, said last week that this is something that should have been coordinated at the outset.
Later Saturday, President Trump told NBC that he’d secured cooperation. “They’ve not only committed, but they think it’s a great idea,” but he didn’t say which country or countries he was referring to.
And, in that same interview, he said, “We believe we’ll be joined by other countries,” drawing into question whether he actually secured commitments.
ABC News has asked the White House to clarify, and they have not responded.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said of the strait on Friday, “We have been dealing with it, and don’t need to worry about it.”
But, so far, there have been no escorts, and requests from shipping companies have reportedly been denied.
Pressed on whether Trump has actual commitments from others to help, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz said during an interview with CNN, “I’ll leave those conversations to him,” referring to the president.
Wright told ABC News that more work needs to be done before the strait can open and escorts can occur. “Right now, our focus is destroying their military capabilities, including those that are used specifically to threaten the straits. But we need to finish those tasks first, and you will see the straits open again in the not-too-distant future.”
He also did not specify which countries would help.
Trump spoke with the leaders of the U.K. and Canada on Sunday, but there was no mention of any commitment from the foreign leaders.
Trump, meanwhile, has been warning Iran that further disruptions in the strait could result in devastating strikes on the country’s oil infrastructure. He said he’s so far held back during those strikes on Kharg Island, but on Friday warned he would “reconsider” if Iran interfered with the Strait of Hormuz.
On Saturday, he told NBC, “We may hit it a few more times just for fun.”
A deal?
Many experts in Washington believe ultimately, there needs to be another nuclear deal in order for this war to end.
Trump said over the weekend he’s not ready “because the terms aren’t good enough yet.”
“Iran wants to make a deal, and I don’t want to make it because the terms aren’t good enough yet,” Trump reportedly told NBC.
And in a post to his social media platform, he said Iran “wants a deal,” but not one he would accept.
He also raised questions about whether the new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, is alive or not. On Friday, the State Department announced a $10 million reward for information on key Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps leaders, including Khamenei.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told CBS on Sunday, “We don’t see any reason why we should talk with Americans, because we were talking with them when they decided to attack us, and that was for the second time.”
But, in what some interpret as a more positive diplomatic development, Aragachi said Iran has not yet attempted to retrieve its 440 kilograms of highly enriched uranium from “underneath the rubble” of those nuclear sites bombed by the U.S. last June.
If, he said, that material is to be recovered, it would be done under the “supervision of the agency,” a reference to the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Earlier Saturday, Reuters reported that Trump had rejected efforts from Middle East allies to begin diplomatic ceasefire negotiations. The White House had not responded to ABC’s requests for comment about the report.
“Nothing is on the table right now. Everything depends on the future,” Araghchi said.
Marines deployed
On Friday, Trump ordered 2,200 Marines aboard three U.S. Navy amphibious ships to the Middle East, two officials confirmed to ABC News.
Trump has yet to comment on this decision, and why it’s necessary if the war, in his words, is “won.”
The Marines are part of a Marine Expeditionary Unit, which means that they are capable of conducting land, amphibious and aviation missions.
It also means there are more than just 2,220 Marines headed there. There are between 2,000 and 2,500 Sailors also on board those ships, providing support.
In all, approximately 5,000 Marines and Sailors are headed to the region.
The Pentagon has not acknowledged the deployment and has not offered any guidance on its mission.
Nevertheless, they are already underway and will take a minimum of 10 days to get there.
Backlash to campaign using photo of war dead
Trump drew backlash from his critics over the weekend after it was confirmed an affiliated political action committee sent a new fundraising email featuring an official White House photo from the dignified transfer of the first six U.S. service members killed in the Iran war, while also offering contributors access to “private national security briefings.”
In the photo, Trump can be seen saluting a flag-draped transfer case containing the remains of one of the six fallen soldiers.
Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on CNN, “If the president is willing to raise campaign funds over the bodies of America’s war dead, he is unfit to be the commander in chief.”
The White House and Never Surrender Inc. have not responded to ABC News’ requests for comment.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One on Sunday, Trump said he “didn’t see” the email. “I didn’t see it. I mean, somebody puts it up. We have a lot of people working for us, but there’s nobody that’s better to the military than me,” Trump said.
The Pentagon identified the six service members killed when a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq on Thursday.
Three of the Air Force airmen were assigned to the 6th Air Refueling Wing, MacDill Air Force Base in Florida: Maj. John A. Klinner, 33, of Auburn, Alabama; Capt. Ariana G. Savino, 31, of Covington, Washington; and Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt, 34, of Bardstown, Kentucky
The other three airmen were assigned to the 121st Air Refueling Wing at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in Columbus, Ohio: Capt. Seth R. Koval, 38, of Mooresville, Indiana; Capt. Curtis J. Angst, 30, of Wilmington, Ohio; and Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons, 28, of Columbus, Ohio
The crash, which involved another KC-135 tanker, is still under investigation.
Oil reserves
Oil reserves from emergency stockpiles will start flowing immediately to Asia but won’t be available to the U.S. and Europe until the end of March, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in a new press release Sunday.
Importantly, the IEA did not specify exactly how much oil would start flowing per day — a metric oil analysts are watching to understand what the immediate impact might be on prices. Oil prices have so far not been tamed by the announcement that countries, including the U.S., are tapping their strategic reserves.
The IEA announced the biggest-ever release of oil from reserves — 400 million barrels — from its 32 member countries last week. That includes 172 million barrels from the U.S.
The booking photo for William Stevenson. (New Castle County Police)
(NEW CASTLE COUNTY, Del.) — Former first lady Jill Biden’s ex-husband has been charged with murdering his wife following an “extensive weeks-long investigation,” police in Delaware announced on Tuesday.
Police officers responding to a “reported domestic dispute” at a home in the Wilmington community of Oak Hill on Dec. 28 found Linda Stevenson, 64, unresponsive on the living room floor, according to police. Her husband, William “Bill” Stevenson, had called 911, police said at the time.
A grand jury in New Castle County on Monday indicted Stevenson, 77, with first-degree murder in connection with his wife’s death, according to police.
The indictment alleges he “did intentionally cause the death” of his wife.
Detectives took Stevenson into custody at his home without incident, police said. He has since been arraigned and is being held in the Howard Young Correctional Institution in Wilmington after failing to post $500,000 bail, police said.
It is unclear if Stevenson has an attorney.
Officers responded to the Stevensons’ home after 11 p.m. on Dec. 28 and attempted lifesaving measures, but Linda Stevenson was later pronounced dead, police said.
Detectives from the New Castle County Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Unit responded to the scene to assume the investigation, officials said.
No additional details, including the cause of death, have been released.
Linda Stevenson ran a bookkeeping business and was “deeply family-oriented,” according to her obituary, which did not mention her husband.
Bill Stevenson founded a popular bar and music hall in the early 1970s in Newark, Delaware. He is the former husband of Jill Biden, the Delaware Department of Justice confirmed to ABC News. The two were married for five years before divorcing in 1975.
Jill Biden married former President Joe Biden two years later, in 1977.
Stock image of police lights. (Douglas Sacha/Getty Images)
(WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.) — Multiple people were shot, including two fatally, after a “planned fight” between two juveniles at a North Carolina park escalated and several people opened fire, authorities said.
Gunfire broke out at Leinbach Park in Winston-Salem on Monday morning, according to police.
“This stemmed from a planned fight between two young individuals,” the Winston-Salem Police Department said.
The two met shortly before 10 a.m., when the “situation escalated significantly, leading to multiple people exchanging gunfire,” the police department said.
Two people are dead, according to the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.
Winston-Salem police said they have not confirmed the total number of victims and suspects are “still outstanding.”
The incident was isolated and remains under investigation, police said.
Leinbach Park, which is located near a middle school, remains closed, police said. Students at the school were safe, police said.
