The restrictions were put in place last October at a time when the drought had raised the fire danger to extreme levels.
"We've been monitoring conditions, and believe there's been enough precipitation to give us the relief we need to safely allow open campfires in the back country," said Terry Stolz, Fire Staff Officer for the Chattahoochee and Oconee National Forests. This means the public can now use campfires along the Appalachian Trail and other undeveloped parts of the national forests.
In the period leading up to the campfire restrictions there were several factors such as extremely low fuel moisture and high demand for fire fighting resources in other parts of the country that made the restrictions necessary. Fire managers here in Georgia were keenly aware of the fires we experienced in south Georgia earlier this year and knew the key to preventing wildfires is to avoid starting them in the first place.
Fire managers will continue to monitor conditions and evaluate the risk of wildfires as we move through the rest of the winter and approach the spring fire season.
TRAIL REOPENS
The Byron Herbert Reece Trail on Blood Mountain has reopened after being closed for more than a week following the disappearance of hiker Meredith Emerson.
U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman Karen McKenzie said the trail and the parking lot for it were closed last Wednesday after Emerson was reported missing.
McKenzie said the trail and parking lot was closed initially to accommodate the large number of people looking for Emerson, whose body was found earlier this week in Dawson County. Then, McKenzie said, the area was closed as law enforcement worked the area as a crime scene after determining that Emerson had been kidnapped while hiking New Year's Day.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2008/1/205641