Fire forces evacuation of 600 homes in Florida Panhandle

by · ABC Action News - WFTS - Tampa Bay
A fire engine races to the scene of an emergency.MattGush
MattGush/ThinkStock
A fire engine races to the scene of an emergency.MattGush
MattGush/ThinkStock

PANAMA CITY, Fla. (AP) — Residents in 600 homes in the Florida Panhandle have been evacuated as a wildfire destroyed two houses and damaged 12 others, in an area that has spent the past three years recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Michael.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a news conference Saturday that hundreds of thousands of acres of downed trees from the 2018 hurricane, along with low humidity and strong winds, have created “the perfect storm” for the hazardous fire conditions around Panama City, Florida.

As of Saturday morning, the 1,400-acre Adkins Avenue Fire was 30% contained, according to the Florida Forest Service.