Across the state more than 740 firefighters helped fight the some 200 wildfires Sunday, according to the Virginia Department of Forestry. The agency estimated about 6,000 acres had been charred across the state, almost half the total that were scorched during all of 2007.

Six homes have been reported destroyed, including three in Dinwiddie County. Localities have not reported any deaths or major injuries as a result of the fires. The Department of Forestry said two firefighters were injured yesterday but did not specify where.

Wildfires forced 12 counties to declare local states of emergency Sunday. They were Bedford, Caroline Dinwiddie, Hanover, Henrico, King George, Louisa, Lunenburg, Nelson, Orange, Roanoke and Spotsylvania.

Local and state officials say they believe most of the fires may have been ignited by fallen trees hitting power lines. It is possible some were accidentally or intentionally set, said John Campbell, a Forestry Department spokesman.

In Roanoke County, a fire that had burned 1,000 acres from Timberview Road to Carvins Cove was still growing last night. Seventy-five county firefighters were on the scene yesterday, as were firefighters from Washington, Wise, Henry and Augusta counties, as well as Harrisonburg, Norton and Big Stone Gap, said Roanoke spokesman Joel Shelton.

In Bedford County, about a dozen fires broke out over the weekend. The biggest, in the Montvale area, yesterday threatened to top 1,000 acres, said Bedford spokeswoman Janet Blankenship. She said 165 firefighters were battling the blaze, while local volunteers were dealing with smaller ones.

More than 120 Virginia National Guard soldiers went on state active duty Sunday to help fight fires across the state. A Guard helicopter dumped 600-gallon buckets of water to help contain fires in the Tazewell area. And more than 100 soldiers at Fort Pickett prepared for duty today in Roanoke and Bedford helping the Forestry Department.

Brush fires continued to plague parts of south Hampton Roads yesterday as well. The Virginia Department of Transportation closed part of U.S. 17 in southern Chesapeake because of thick smoke from brush fires in Camden County, N.C., just across the state line.

Chesapeake fire officials said the wind might blow heavier smoke into the city today. Yesterday, Chesapeake's fire marshal banned open burning after several wind-whipped fires moved through the area.

A brush fire along Interstate 664 in Suffolk on Sunday forced the temporary closure of the Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel. Brush fires also broke out in Newport News and Hampton.

About 4,000 Southside Electric Cooperative customers in south-central Virginia remained without electricity after high winds. The majority of the remaining outages are concentrated in the area west from Victoria to Bedford, a spokeswoman for the company said yesterday. Repair efforts were expected to continue throughout last night and into today.

More than 67,000 of Appalachian Power's customers in western Virginia remained without power, and the utility company is warning customers that it could be several days before their electricity is restored. The company said many of the outages were the result of high winds knocking trees and debris across power lines Sunday. More than 77,000 customers were without power at one point.

Written by Richmond Times-Dispatch