When 11-year old Sarah Loan got home from school Tuesday afternoon, she got the news from her father that fires that had just started in the nearby St. Mary's Wilderness.

She immediately ran inside and packed a bag of essentials, and at the top of the bag were her most precious items — her Bible and her Nintendo DS.

Emily Loan, Sarah's mother, is ready with family pictures and key documents by the door. She said the smoke has been so bad at times that she had to put a jacket over her face to breathe.

The fires have also meant some sleepless nights for the Loans, as they've been lighting the nighttime sky, making the fire seem closer than it is, Emily said.

Looking out at the wilderness during daylight isn't scary, she said.  Nighttime is another matter.

"When I look out my window, you want to shut the blinds, because it scares you," she said. "It's like, you don't want to go there because you're thinking, 'what if I don't wake up,' or, if you have to leave, 'what's the most important thing to you in the house.' Of course it's your family."

And though no cause has been determined — as yet — there has been a dramatic effect. Besides the smoke stench, 2,000 acres had burned — up from 1,300 acres earlier in the day — according to U.S. Forest Service spokesperson Al McPhereson. The fire, he said, has been about 15 percent contained.

The east flank was where crews had concentrated much of Thursday's efforts, but with the fire's intensity kicking up on the west flank late in the afternoon, they'll concentrate on both flanks today, McPhereson said. Fire crews are still determining, he said, what their ability would be to contain the fire. 

"They're still hoping to keep it confined at a smaller size, so they're still honing in on that objective," McPhereson said. "We thought [Thursday] would tell the tale, but [today] will have to tell the tale."

As for the cause: "Lightning is not making sense, and neither is man-cause," he said. 

The rugged terrain has made it difficult for the 114 people dealing with the fires, he said, but added that no homes were currently threatened.

But Bob Clements, a lifetime resident of that area, said he believes his, and other homes nearby, might be threatened if the fire isn't contained soon. He fears that the fire will move south and jump across Route 56.

"A lot of homes back in there are going to have a rough time if it does that," Clements said.

McPhereson said so far, the fire hasn't.

"We want to make darn sure it doesn't," he said.

The fire slowed somewhat with negligible winds for much of Thursday afternoon. Expected rain came down as only a trickle in the morning before giving way to 70-degree temperatures and partly sunny skies.

Winds yesterday evening in Steeles Tavern were blowing south-southeast at 4 mph.  The evening forecast called for a 30 percent chance of thunderstorms, with a 50 percent chance of thunderstorms Friday afternoon, with the forecast calling for winds west-southwest at 10-20 mph.

A small crew planned to monitor the fire overnight, McPhereson said, with Type 1 — highly trained, fit crews — doing the bulk of work today with the help of bulldozers. The Blue Ridge Parkway from Route 56 to Love Gap remains closed.

McPherson said there would be a lot of early morning activity getting people in place.

  "There's plenty of fire for us to take care of," McPhereson said.