ATLANTA — Cars torched, businesses destroyed as Channel 2 Action News got a firsthand look at the destruction left from the wildfires burning in South Georgia.
“Thirty years of my life gone. I mean, that’s what I see,” said Jesse Morgan, as he looked at what remains of his auto shop. “It’s my livelihood. I mean, that’s all I have, you know? I mean, that’s really all I know.”
Morgan is one of thousands impacted by the Highway 82 fire that has now burned more than 20,000 acres.
Fire officials said that the fire’s behavior is nearly unprecedented for Georgia, acting more like a blaze from California.
“It is a pretty extreme situation. Really unprecedented for this area,” Fire official Karen Miranda Gleason said.
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Gleason told Channel 2’s Michael Doudna that Sunday’s rain does provide some relief, a chance for firefighters to dig in and fight back the
Until then, fire teams hope that they can get through, accomplishing a lot more work on containing the fire without anyone getting hurt.
But for some, the fight is just beginning.
“I’m having to change hats. I guess I’m going from doing mechanic work and body work to being a scrapper,” Morgan said.
Even as firefighters are left fighting on the front lines, others are trying to pick up the pieces and figure out how to move on.
“If I were in a better position, I would try to help them out. But, I mean, I’ve got all I can handle right here,” Morgan said.
If you would like to help out the Morgan family, they do have a GoFundMe that they’ve just set up for donations.
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