The Honey Prairie fire in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge has grown to over 90,000 acres.

Lighting likely set the blaze on April 28, and the fire has grown to encompass over a quarter of the refuge.

While flames do not directly threaten any towns, Jim Burkhart with the Georgia Forestry Commission says the priority is protecting life and property.

“Our objective is to try and keep the wildfire within the perimeter of the swamp; it doesn’t hurt anything when it burns on the refuge.”

Mr. Burkhart said the burns are needed for the health of the swamp.

Though the current Honey Prairie fire is historically large, it has yet to come close to a 2007 fire that was nearly five times as large.

Tags: Okefenokee Swamp, wild fires