Substantial rain is in the forecast for Western North Carolina for the first time in a while, and it could help the fight against a series of mountain wildfires.
Firefighters have been making progress in North Carolina, and the rain is expected to bring some welcome relief.
Mike Sporer is a forecaster for the National Weather Service in Blacksburg, Va. He says it won't be enough rain to end the drought that kindled the wildfires. But it will help the firefighters' efforts.
“It's going to allow them to get a leg up on the fire. It's going to help contain it, and it's going to allow their various containment methods - their previous burnouts and fire lines - to hold steady and the fires will gradually burn themselves out,” he says.
Watauga County is among the regions dealing with wildfires. About 25 area agencies have worked to contain that fire, which has burned more than 1,400 acres.
The forecast calls for rain beginning overnight Tuesday and continuing through Wednesday, when there is a 100 percent chance of precipation. Sporer says wind gusts, particulalry along the ridgelines, will continue to be a threat.