ROCKBRIDGE COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) – It has been just over a year since the Matt’s Creek Fire that burned nearly 11,000 acres between Rockbridge County and Bedford County began.
On Friday, officials addressed the recovery process and reflected on what efforts to contain the fire were like back in November 2023.
“We’re glad that it’s a beautiful sunny day and we’re not in the midst of what we were this time last year,” said Chief of Bedford County Fire and Rescue Janet Blankenship.
Officials said that the recovery process is coming along nicely and that new plant life is growing from the ashes.
“The vast majority of burned acreage really experienced very minimal severity or effects from the fire and those effects were actually beneficial,” said Jean Lorber, a forest ecologist with the Nature Conservancy.
Lorber has been on the ground in the forest, getting a close look at the impacts the fire had on plants and wildlife.
As he explained, many of the plant species in the Appalachians actually benefit from fire.
It clears out dead debris and gives new plants more access to sunlight.
“In March it looked black,” said Lorber. “In April, we see shoots of ferns and seedlings and grasses and wildflowers pop out.”
Beyond plant life, officials discussed the long-term impacts on the forest at large.
“I am happy to report that overall, the landscape did not receive significant impacts to watershed function, stream health, or forest health,” said Glenwood-Pedlar district park ranger Lauren Stull.
Roughly 85% of the burned area sustained almost no damage and the more heavily damaged areas were concentrated in the southwestern portion of the burn map.
In spite of the benefits to plant life and the limited impact on most of the forest a year later, officials say people still need to understand how fires can be prevented.
This year, more than 400 fires have burned in excess of 20,000 acres across Virginia.
Most share a common cause.
“Almost 95% of all of our fires are human-caused,” said Virginia Department of Fire official Denny McCarthy. “Carelessness is a big part of why we have presence of fires in Virginia.”
While the source of the Matt’s Creek fire is still under investigation, it is known that the fire was a result of human action.