Gordon County residents might have noticed billows of smoke filling the air throughout the day. Residents who live near Johns Mountain probably even smelled it. But the fire, though covering hundreds of acres, wasn’t an accident.
Actually, two fires were prescribed by the Conasauga Ranger District, with one in Northern Floyd County and the other covering 244 acres in Gordon County. The purpose of the fires was to reduce hazardous fuels, such as leaf litter and dead vegetation, and to restore the forest habitat, according to USDA District Fire Management Officer Jeffrey Schardt.
“A lot of the ecosystem around here is fire adapted,” Schardt said. “There are certain species of trees and plants that require fire to maintain a healthy status, to grow and reproduce.”