KNOX COUNTY, Tenn — UPDATE (5 p.m.): Rural Metro said that the fire had been extinguished by 5 p.m. Friday.
--
Knox County Rural Metro responded to a brush fire Friday north of Halls that had spread to several structures.
According to Rural Metro, crews responded to the fire around 1:30 p.m. in the 8600 block of Foust Hollow Road, which is off Maynardville Pike. Neighbors in the area said the fire was initially started as a controlled burn three days ago but said it got out of hand.
According to Jeff Bagwell with Rural Metro, the fire spread to abandoned structures and barns in the area. He said firefighters were working to keep it from spreading to occupied homes. As of 4 p.m., he said the fire had grown to a little over an acre and was 30% to 40% contained.
Bagwell said they were dealing with a "manpower-intensive event," saying they contacted the Tennessee Division of Forestry to help. He said crews are going to be in the area for a while fighting it.
"This fire has taken on a life of its own. There are now homes being threatened because of the little bit of breeze that we have -- the winds that are fueling it -- and the dry conditions. People think because it's rained recently in the last 10 days that we're okay, but we're really not," Bagwell said.
Bagwell said crews are concerned about the houses on the lower end of the hillside on Foust Hollow Road, saying the wind appears to be pushing the fire downhill.
Crews asked people to avoid the area as they worked to put out the fire.
This story is developing and will be updated.