All along the Appalachian Mountain Range, forest fires have erupted, covering the Upstate of South Carolina in smoke.

On Wednesday, November 9th, a string of some of the largest forest fires in recent history broke out, displacing thousands of animals and posing a potential threat to people who live neazr the Southern Appalachians. So far, over 100,000 acres of forestry have burned across Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, Kentucky, Virginia, Alabama, and South Carolina.

Right now there is speculation on how the fires allegedly started, but police think that it was human-caused and was either the result of a campfire that was not fully put out or intentional.

“I think it is destructive to our ecosystem here and I think it’s sad that we’re losing so much old forestation” says junior Ellis Millwood.

The fires have also affected the practices of each current Christ Church sport. On Monday, November 14, every team’s practice got cancelled except for football, who limited their outdoor activities.

“It’s been really bad at football; Don [Frost] makes us practice anyways,” Millwood adds. “The smoke gets in our lungs and makes us cough.”

However, as the week progressed the air quality got significantly better around the school, allowing for the continuation of normal team practices.

Hopefully, in the near future, the nearby firefighters can successfully suppress the fire and find out what the cause really was.