CHARLESTON, S.C (WCIV) -- Fire warnings and burn bans have been lifted across South Carolina.
Tuesday's rainfall provided the moisture the area had been missing for much of the summer, and eased the fire danger.
The weather brought a welcomed change to the forecast. It left firefighters relieved to get some help from mother nature.
"We've got a lot of much needed rain on the coastal plain especially," says SC Forestry Commission spokesman, Scott Hawkins.
As of 6 p.m. Tuesday, forestry officials lifted the statewide red flag alert. It means burning for now is alright if monitored. Likewise, the burn ban for folks in Georgetown, Marion and also Horry County, where a wildfire has been burning since July 3, has been canceled. The Forestry Commission says the rain has relieved fire danger and stabilized the state's equipment and resources.
"In those three counties we had a serious situation, a major fire that we're still on in Horry County," says Hawkins. "We had all the resources in that area tied up."
With the good, rain storms created some problems overnight. Lightning hit a gas line, starting a fire in a house in Mount Pleasant. Something officials say happens fairly often.
"We've ran in our record that we've had several lightning storms and its happened all over the area," says Mount Pleasant Fire Chief, Herb Williams.
Williams says lightning is unpredictable and it can even travel through a house, striking inside. But the rain that comes with it is worth it.
"It is a relief," Williams says. "As dry as we've been, especially in slow rains like we're having today, it is a Godsend because it moisturizes everything."
The Forestry commission still urges people to burn with caution and to make sure it's in accordance with all state and local laws.
