Crews work to contain wildfire burning near Rockingham, Stokes County border

ROCKINGHAM COUNTY, N.C. — Firefighters and the North Carolina Forest Service are working to contain a large brush fire that spread from Stokes County into Rockingham County.

According to the North Carolina Forest Service, the fire is approximately 250 acres and is 50% contained, as of 10 a.m. Sunday.

Residents in the area were shocked when they learned about the fire. Brienna Reynolds didn’t expect to spend her Saturday like this.

“I packed up my kids, our animals. We have livestock, so we kind of just opened everything so they can just kind of go run off,” Reynolds said.

Thick smoke filled the sky, blanketing Goinstown School Road, Bennett Road, and Victory Hill Church Road. The firm was reported to be near Highway 770, too.

Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page confirmed there have been no reported injuries or property damage at this time.

“I’m not aware of any residences being damaged. I’m not aware of anybody being injured, but you know, anytime you’re fighting fires or something like this, there’s always potential for someone to get injured, so we hope everybody will stay safe,” Page said.

The Northeast Stokes Volunteer Fire & Rescue says it plans to resume responding to the fire on Sunday.

The North Carolina Forest Service has been flying scout planes over the area to assess the damage. 

Firefighters from multiple counties are working to contain hot spots on Sunday while battling strong winds.

Reynolds described the effects of the fire in the air.

“Tons of smoke, um, lots of you can see all the ashes and stuff kind of coming down now, um, smells really bad,” she said, laughing. “They told us we need to evacuate, so that’s what we’re doing.”

Now, she’s facing another challenge—not knowing where to go.

“We’re just trusting in God through it all … It’s all in God’s hands,” Reynolds said, laughing again.

Page stated that conditions remain a concern as firefighters continue to battle the flames. Fire crews from Rockingham and Stokes counties were on the scene Saturday. 

“I hope they can get it extinguished before too long, but like I said, as long as we have daylight, you have potential for the winds to stay up, and right now, as you can see, the winds are still going,” Page said.

He also asked for support for first responders on the front lines.

“Keep all our volunteers in your thoughts and prayers,” he said.

A statewide burn ban remains in effect. Officials warn that extremely dry conditions make fires like this one easier to spread. The NC Forest Service has canceled all burning permits until further notice.

This story will be updated as we learn more.