Updates on the wildfires:

The two fires have merged and it's now burning sixteen thousand acres of land.

There are no additional evacuations at this time, but previous evacuations are still in effect. 

County Road 1471 has reopened.

There were 20 thousand lightning strikes statewide. The lightning mixed combined with drought conditions have firefighters in North Central Florida battling Mother Nature.

The Division of Forestry said the two largest fires are in Bradford County. One is close to the Alachua County line. The two fires are burning towards each other. As many as 700 people have been evacuated. Another fire is burning along the Alachua/Union County line.

The two Bradford county fires have burned up to 6,000 acres so far and no buildings have been destroyed.

Road closures are as follows:

State Road 100 from Keystone to Starke

Bradford County Road 18 bewteen State Road 100 and US 301

Meng Dairy Road

Southeast 73rd Avenue

Southeast 16th

All residents living along and adjacent County Road 1471 from the Bradford County Border south to Northeast 143rd Avenue were advised to evacuate. A shelter was set up at Waldo Baptist Church in Waldo.

Residents in the Griffis Loop area all the way to Batten Road have been evacuated.

The fire in the County Road 18 area near Hampton has resulted in the evacuation of residents bewteen 41st and 47th avenues.

Residents on County Road 18 as well as those on SE 38th Avenue (Rhoden Road) and SE 109th Street (Meng Dairy Road) were also asked to evacuate.

A shelter in Bradford County was set up at Bradford Middle School gymnasium.

For emergency information, call the Bradford County Department of Emergency Management at (904) 966-6300.