Forecasters say another round of rain will help to subdue the wildfires in western North Carolina, but they are also keeping an eye on possible mudslide conditions.
Firefighters have been able to fully contain the Party Rock Fire that was threatening Lake Lure, officials with the state Forest Service said.
Now, they will monitor steep terrain for mudslides, because burning can make the surface more susceptible when heavy rains follow widespread fires. So far, there have been no reports of unstable terrain.
"We're not actually seeing a big potential for landslides or mudslides because the soil really didn't get impacted as much as, say, fires out west where the soil actually becomes permeable to water," said National Weather Service meteorologist Scott Krentz.
Krentz said more storms are coming out of the Gulf of Mexico, and could drop as many as two inches of rain in the mountains on Tuesday night and Wednesday.
More than a dozen wildfires have now burned more than 90 square miles in western North Carolina.
