Blowing Rock--Fires sparked by lightning from Friday night thunderstorms blackened several areas of Caldwell County just south of Blowing Rock, according to state firefighters on the scene. 

Firefighters were able to contain most of the fires by Saturday morning, but one flared up near the Globe mid-afternoon Saturday, prompting a call for water drops from a helicopter.  A spotter plane kept track of the fire, visible from Blowing Rock and along US 321.  The afternoon fire was just inside the Pisgah National Forest, according to the state firefighters on the scene, and there were fears that afternoon winds could spread the existing fire and that evening storms could spark more fires.