The Yellow Bluff Fire near Jacksonville, Florida continues to grow, and portions of I-95 are still shut down because of it. Read on to see a map, photos of the fire, and more details about where it is located, along with other fires in Florida.
I-95 Shut Down Due to Yellow Bluff Fire (Traffic Map Details)
The Yellow Bluff fire is currently 450 acres and 30 percent contained as of Thursday night, News4Jax shared. Part of Interstate 95 north of Jacksonville is still closed in both directions between State Road 200 and Pecan Park, Weather.com shared.
View from the scene of #YellowBluffFire on Interstate 95.
According to News4Jax, as of 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 23, traffic was being rerouted to the following:
- I-95 southbound is being routed east on SR 200, south on US 17
- I-95 northbound is being detoured east on Pecan Park Road, north on US 17
The west edge of the fire is adjacent to I-95, and no structures are currently in danger, Weather.com shared.
Part of I-95 were at a standstill and detour routes were clogged on Thursday night. The highway was shut down because smoke made visibility very difficult.
RIGHT NOW: ⬇️ Look between the lines. ⬇️ HUNDREDS of vehicles at a standstill on I-95 and clogging detour routes due to the #YellowBluffFire. We have LIVE TEAM COVERAGE from @skyjax1 & the @ActionNewsJax team on FOX30 & CBS47.
Here are tips on driving in low visibility due to smoke:
Northside fires 🔥
When visibility is low, remember to drive slow.
Smoke can lower visibility on roads. To ensure safety, follow these important driving rules:
•DRIVE WITH LIGHTS ON LOW BEAM
•SLOW DOWN
•SIGNAL TURNS
•REDUCE DISTRACTIONS
•DO NOT STOP ON THE ROAD
An embeddable map of the fire and traffic in the Jacksonville area isn’t available, but you can see a live traffic map from the Florida Highway Patrol here. The map shows exactly where the detours are set:
FLHSMV.govFlorida detour location on I-95
The fire began Wednesday near Yellow Bluff road and US 17, with strong winds helping the fire grow, pushing it near the Duval and Nassau county line. It’s currently contained to about 25 percent, the Florida Forest Service shared. It’s not clear what started the fire (which is actually a complex of multiple fires), but it appeared to start near train tracks that are parallel to Main Street, News4Jax noted.
RT JSOPIO: Duval/Nassau County line – I-95 between SR 200 and Pecan Park has been closed due to smoke of a nearby fire. Drivers are encouraged to use caution, expect delays and take U.S. 17 as an alternate route. FHPJacksonville is monitoring and will de…
The video below explains how to get around the detours:
Yellow Bluff & Other Fire Maps from Florida
A Google Crisis map is available below, although you may need to zoom into Florida for more details. It shows advisories, warning, and InciWeb wildfire information. As of the time of publication, the Yellow Bluff fire wasn’t added to InciWeb, so it’s not showing up on the Google Crisis map. However, the smoke advisory connected to the Yellow Bluff fire is appearing.
You can see a wildfire dashboard of all the current active wildfires in Florida at this link. The map is not embeddable, but here is a screenshot as of Thursday night:
Florida Disaster MapsActive Florida Fires
Another map of the fires is available here. A screenshot of the map from Thursday night is below. For fires are listed as active. The full list is two sections below this one.
Florida Forest ServiceFire Map
Here’s a closer look at the location of the Yellow Bluff Fire, which is the red symbol on the map below:
Florida Forest ServiceYellow Bluff Fire
Another interactive map is provided by the Florida Forest Service here.
Smoke Maps
Here is where the smoke is expected to be blowing from the fire tomorrow:
#firstalertwx smoke will continue to blow to the west through Fri. from the I-95 wildfire Northern Duval Co. @WOKVNews
The current dense smoke advisory for the region reads:
…DENSE SMOKE ADVISORY FOR INLAND DUVAL AND INLAND NASSAU COUNTIES IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 AM EDT FRIDAY… The National Weather Service in Jacksonville has issued a Dense Smoke Advisory, which is in effect until 11 AM EDT Friday.
* VISIBILITIES…Visibilities will be reduced to a quarter mile or less tonight as winds gradually decrease and the smoke settles to the ground…near and west of the Yellow Bluff Road wildfire.
* TIMING…After sunset tonight through Friday morning.
* IMPACTS…Thick smoke will make travel difficult and could cause respiratory difficulty.
Recommended actions: A Dense Smoke Advisory means smoke from a wildfire will limit visibilities. If driving, slow down, use your headlights, and leave plenty of distance ahead of you in case a sudden stop is needed.
List of Additional Fires in Florida
This isn’t the only recent fire in Florida. On May 22, the Florida Forest Service successfully contained a 200-acre fire to 100 percent, WJHG reported. The Indian Pass fire in Gulf County had been started by an illegal debris burn. It was reported at 12:45 p.m. on May 22 and was 100 percent contained later that day, but not before it had grown to 200 acres.
Another fire is currently burning in Northeast Gum Swamp Road in the Osceola National Forest in Columbia County, about 70 miles west of the Yellow Bluff fire. This 200-acre wildfire may cause visibility in the area to deteriorate, News4Jax shared.
A second wildfire off US 17 and Yellow Bluff Road was fully contained on May 22:
Firefighters working 2 wildfires off US 17 & Yellow Bluff Rd #YellowBluffFires the north fire is 100% contained by JFRD -unknown acreage. @FLForestService has the south fire 40% contained but it has burned into the marsh. A helicopter is inbound to help. No structures threatened
A total of four active wildfires occurred in northeast Florida on May 23:
There are 4 active wildfires for 188.8 acres in NE Florida today. Interactive map here: t.co/WHfxFdTK1e
A total of 26 active wildfires are burning statewide in Florida, covering more than 1,281 acres, according to Florida Disaster Maps. Here are the largest ones:
- 10th Street Fire (active): 1.4 acres in size. Located in the Orlando area.
- Yellow Bluff (described in the section above)
- Charlotte Harbor Fire (active): 300 acres, 26.8357 latitude & -82.2147 longitude. This fire is at the Charlotte Harbor Preserve Park, YourSun reported, and it started around 3:55 p.m. Wednesday evening. It was still at 200 acres near Placida by Thursday afternoon. Officials expect it to grow to 300 or 350 acres before it is put out. No homes or structures are threatened.
- Indian Pass: 200 acres and 100 percent contained
- Prideaux Fire: 90 acres and 100 percent contained
- Buck Lake Fire (active): 84 acres: This is a prescribed fire at the Buck Lake Conservation area
- Hendrie: 42 acres and 100 percent contained
- Florida Grade: 31 acres and 100 percent contained
- Lake Hatchineha (active): 30 acres
- Ortega River: 28.30 acres and 100 percent contained
- Goodman Hill Rd: 15 acres and 100 percent contained
- Thick Root FIre (according to NIFC): In Big Cypress National Preserve. This fire is 528 acres and 25 percent contained, located 30 miles east of Naples.
See a map of the fires here.
How To Stay Updated on the Yellow Bluff Fire
Want to stay updated on the latest involving the Yellow Bluff Fire? A good source is the FFS Jacksonville Twitter page. Here’s a recent tweet:
The #YellowBluffFire is estimated at 450 acres and is 30% contained. Smoke is still heavy on interstate 95
Jax Ready is another good Twitter source with frequent updates.