ATLANTA — The smoke from the wildfires is spreading to north Georgia, and local fire departments have been busy handling calls from people worried about the haze.
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On the street of Midtown Atlanta, where there’s smoke, there’s not always fire, at least not on Wednesday.
“It’s pretty crazy. But we’ve seen effects like that from big forest fires far away,” Georgia Tech student Stephen Harvey said.
In this case, more than 400 miles, far beyond the hazy skyline that NewsDrone 2 flew over. However, many residents called 911.
“They have received an abnormal amount of calls. Over a 100,” Atlanta Fire Rescue Captain Andrew Anderson said.
Anderson says callers thought the fire was here, but too many calls could overload the city’s emergency system, so they wanted to set the record straight.
“If you do see an active fire, please do call. But keep in mind that a lot of this smoke you’re smelling is coming from south Georgia,” Anderson said.
Back in midtown Atlanta, word has spread about the source of the smoke and smell, but given the great distance, it’s hard for some to wrap their heads around.
“It is kind of crazy. It’s pretty far out,” Georgia Tech student Carter Lewis said.
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