The Nation - News from March 30, 1986

Two firefighters were injured as hundreds of exhausted volunteers and foresters battled more than 250 forest fires in West Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee, authorities said. More than 50 new fires were reported in West Virginia, in addition to 18,000 acres already burned. Across the western border, Kentucky officials reported more than 80 new fires. Two National Guard helicopters helped about 350 firefighters battle the flames. In Tennessee, where a firefighter died Friday, aircraft carrying water were used to contend with an estimated 125 fires that burned more than 2,000 acres. The most serious injury involved a West Virginia firefighter who had a live ember fall into his eye.