South Carolina’s Table Rock State Park Is On Fire

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Broad swaths of South Carolina’s Table Rock State Park were ablaze on Saturday evening as a wildfire caused the previous day by a group of negligent teenagers burned out of control.

As of 10:15 p.m. EDT on Saturday (March 22, 2025) the fire had consumed an estimated 110 acres, according to local emergency management officials – and was continuing to expand. All trails at the park were shut down as firefighters and officials with the S.C. Forestry Commission worked to get a handle on the situation.

“While more than 30 personnel from the South Carolina Forestry Commission, The Nature Conservancy, Greenville Water, the USDA Forest Service and local fire departments are working to contain the fire, the steep, mountainous terrain is making it difficult for firefighters to access the active fire and establish more effective firebreaks,” a statement from the commission noted.

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This is the scene of the Table Rock Fire in Pickens County, South Carolina. The blaze, which ignited on Friday, has already scorched more than 35 acres and continues to spread. Crews are actively battling the fire with the support of four aircraft. Officials say the fire was… pic.twitter.com/tbgrwtppfy

— Jackson Gosnell (@jacksongosnell) March 23, 2025

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Assets of the S.C. State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) were also helping firefighters in their efforts, although as of late Saturday evening the blaze was 0% contained.

SLED and the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) were investigating the cause of the fire – which sheriff Tommy Blankenship said was attributable to the deliberate negligence of a group of teenage hikers.

“Four teenagers have been questioned, and charges are pending,” a statement from the sheriff’s office noted.

According to Blankenship, “the young men that are responsible for the fire have been identified.”

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Blankenship said his deputies – who happened to be in the area searching for a hiker who went missing earlier this month – barely made it off the mountain alive after the fire was set.

“Our deputies barely escaped the fire,” Blankenship said. “They were very blessed that they were uninjured.”

Conditions aren’t just making it hard for firefighters to combat the blaze – they are making it easy for the conflagration to spread.

“Several spot fires – when embers land on the unburned side of a fireline – have led to new ignitions outside of the original fire area,” the commission statement continued. “Exacerbating the situation is an abundance of downed timber from Hurricane Helene, which has increased the fuel load on the mountain. Fire weather conditions have continued to deteriorate today, with wind gusts increasing, and relative humidity dropping below 20%. Four aircraft have been providing aviation support all day, including one SCFC airplane surveying the fire, two SCFC single-engine air tankers dropping water and one SLED helicopter using a Bambi bucket to drop water. Officials are hoping to add more air resources tomorrow as the situation evolves.”

Thankfully, as of this publication no injuries have been reported in connection with the fire – nor are any structures currently threatened by it. However, voluntary evacuations were issued for residences on multiple roads in the vicinity of the park.

Those included:

• Country Creek Drive
• Weaver Creek Trail
• Katijah Lane
• Lynne Way
• Dry Lake Road
• Curtis Way
• Shepherd Springs Drive
• Gnome Hill Lane

“Officials are going door-to-door to make residents aware of the call for voluntary evacuations and also working to establish a nearby evacuation center yet to be determined,” the commission noted. “Residents on these roads are not in immediate danger, but are being notified of the possibility of the eventual spread of the Table Rock Fire to their vicinity.”

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S.C. governor Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency on Saturday afternoon in response to the deteriorating situation. McMaster also reinforced the commission’s previously announced statewide “Red Flag” order. That directive “prohibits all outdoor burning, including yard debris burning, prescribed burning, campfires, bonfires and other recreational fires in all unincorporated areas of the state.”

“As this wildfire continues to spread, the state of emergency allows us to mobilize resources quickly and ensure our firefighters have the support they need to protect lives and property,” McMaster said. “Given the elevated risk of wildfires throughout the state, the statewide burning ban will remain in effect until further notice. Anyone who violates this ban can and will go to jail.”

“We always urge all South Carolinians to stay vigilant against wildfire, but the best way people can do that right now is to take seriously – and abide by – the Forestry Commission’s current statewide burning ban,” commission fire chief Darryl Jones said. “As we warned when issuing the ban yesterday, weather conditions across the state are presenting a greatly elevated risk for wildfire, and we’re seeing that play out at the Table Rock Fire and elsewhere.”

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TABLE ROCK FIRE UPDATE – PICKENS COUNTY SC – 18:00:00 –MARCH 22, 2025

The Table Rock Fire, which ignited Friday, is estimated at 35-plus acres and continues to grow. While more than 30 personnel from the South Carolina Forestry Commission, The Nature Conservancy, Greenville… pic.twitter.com/vsqRRbaFoD

— South Carolina Forestry Commission (@ForestryCommish) March 22, 2025

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Located in Pickens County – thirteen miles north of Pickens, S.C. – Table Rock State Park encompasses more than 3,000 acres of mountainous forest. It includes Pinnacle Mountain, the tallest mountain contained entirely within the Palmetto State.

Pinnacle Mountain, incidentally, was the site of the largest wildfire in the history of the Upstate back in November 2016. That blaze – which began with an escaped campfire – raged for several weeks and consumed 10,623 acres.

Wildfires have burned rampant across South Carolina so far this year. Earlier this month, FITSNews reported on a rash of blazes fueled by low humidity, a lack of precipitation and high winds – the very conditions now prevailing on Table Rock.

“Operations will resume Sunday morning with additional tractor and hand crews as well as enhanced air support utilizing Blackhawk and Schnook helicopters as well as air tankers,” local emergency responders noted late Saturday evening.

Keep it tuned to FITSNews for the latest developments on this developing Upstate emergency situation…

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UPDATE |

The latest on the blaze…

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…

Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.

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