Fire on North Carolina’s Cold Mountain is now controlled

ASHEVILLE, NC (AP) — The U.S. Forest Service says the fire on western North Carolina’s famed Cold Mountain has been officially declared as controlled.

Forest Service spokeswoman Adrianne Rubiaco told the Asheville Citizen Times on Tuesday that the blaze came under control on Monday.

She also said that the entire Shining Rock Wilderness protected area is now open. The fire on the 6,000-foot summit had covered 220 acres.

The mountain has been featured in a popular novel and an award-winning movie. Charles Frazier’s best-selling book “Cold Mountain” is about a Confederate soldier’s journey through western North Carolina.