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10Listens: Why did it smell like a campfire in parts of the Valley Thursday?

A haze that reeked of smoke hovered over parts of the Valley Thursday morning, and the forestry service thinks prescribed burns that started Wednesday are probably the reason.

If you woke up Thursday morning wondering why it smelled like someone was burning a campfire nearby, you were not alone.

WBIR 10News got a lot of questions from people on social media asking about the smoke smell and lingering haze that settled into the Valley, particularly from people in West Knox County.

We called dispatchers to see if there were any fires in the area. Nope -- all clear for the most part. Certainly nothing that would generate that level of smoke.

Rebecca Sweet and our weather team then got on the line with the National Weather Service to see if they could see smoke or large fires from satellite imagery. They scoured the area, but couldn't find anything at the time.

We were about to have a real mystery on our hands -- but where there's smoke, there's obviously fire. Thankfully, the State Forestry Division answered the call to get to the bottom of this mystery.

Forestry officials believe it was lingering smoke coming from prescribed burns in both the northern and southern Cherokee National Forest that began Wednesday.

►Read more: Prescribed burns planned

In Cocke County, crews began controlled burns in the northern sections of the forest to prevent wildfires and help sprout new growth. Folks driving along I-40 near Newport might notice some smoke rising near Max Patch where nearly 1,700 acres total are being tended to in Chestnut Ridge.

However, the direction of winds this morning combined with the fact many people outside of Western portion of the Valley didn't seem to notice the strong smoke smell mean the culprit was more likely the burns happening in the southern portion of the forest in Monroe County.

Those prescribed burns are larger, too, with nearly 4,700 acres of forest set aside for burns around Turkey Creek Road.

Based on wind readings, a stronger breeze coming from the southwest appears to have arrived in Monroe County early this morning at just the right time to push lingering smoke to the north-northeast as far as Knox County, at the very least.

The prescribed burns in Cherokee National Forest are scheduled to continue into Saturday, April 14. If the winds are just right like they were this morning, there's a chance people outside Monroe and Cocke Counties will notice a lingering haze and smokey smell into the weekend.

If you have questions concerning the Cherokee National Forest prescribed fire program in your area, contact one of the following Ranger District Offices:

  • Ocoee/Hiwassee (Benton, TN) – 423-338-3300
  • Tellico (Tellico Palins, TN) – 423-253-8400
  • Unaka (Greeneville, TN) – 423-638-4109
  • Watauga (Unicoi, TN) – 423-735-1500
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