A 40-year-old woman from Myrtle Beach has been arrested and accused by South Carolina authorities in connection with a fire that destroyed over 2,000 acres of land around March 1.
The individual, identified as Alexandra Bialousow, is facing charges including arson for negligently allowing the fire to spread to others’ lands and violating regulations regarding fires on specific properties, as stated in Horry County records.
Officials from the South Carolina Forestry Commission (SCFC) enforcement division concluded that a fire pit located on Bialousow’s land was allegedly responsible for triggering the massive Covington Drive Fire that consumed the 2,000-acre area.
“Bialousow is accused of not taking the proper precautions to prevent her debris burn from escaping and negligently allowing fire to spread to ‘lands of another.’ Witnesses reported seeing Bialousow intentionally start a fire in a backyard fire pit that was in close proximity to a tree line within Covington Lakes Subdivision on March 1,” SCFC said in a press release.
U.S. Army Soldiers with Company A, 111th General Support Aviation Battalion, 59 Aviation Troop Command, South Carolina Army National Guard prepared two Blackhawk Helicopters to assist the South Carolina Forestry Commission and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources with wildfire containment in Horry County, South Carolina, on March 2, 2025. (U.S. Army Photo by Sgt. Elizabeth A. Schneider, South Carolina National Guard)
Certain neighborhoods in the Carolina Forest area were evacuated on March 1, but the order was lifted on Sunday. No structures were destroyed, and no injuries were reported as a result of the fire.
If convicted, Bialousow would face possible imprisonment and fines. She has since been released from jail after posting $7,500 bond.
