South Carolina ? Wind-whipped wildfires chased churchgoers from worship, forced hundreds of residents to flee homes and closed highways across the rain-starved Carolinas and Virginia on Sunday.

At least one business and an unknown number of homes and small structures were damaged by a blaze near the South Carolina coast, though no injuries were reported, authorities said.

About 60 homes were briefly evacuated Sunday afternoon as the blaze sent smoke billowing above Conway, a city of about 11,000 people about 15 miles northwest of Myrtle Beach.

“The flames were at the top of the trees and I could feel the heat,” said Lewis Cooper, 37, who fled the fire.