Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe received a briefing on the Rocky MTN Fire on Friday morning/NPS

A cold front that brought some rain and higher humidity was helping firefighters in Shenandoah National Park in Virginia on Friday as they worked to gain the upper hand on a wildfire burning since last weekend.

"They’re expecting maybe a quarter-inch of rain. Any rain is good news, and the humidity has gone up," Sally Hurlbert, one of the public information officers assigned to the Rocky MTN Fire, said Friday morning. "It’s not going to put the fire out, but it’s going to slow it down and allow us to maneuver out in front of it.”

During an overflight Thursday evening crews were able to estimate the size of the fire at nearly 8,000 acres. While the blaze had closed a section of the Skyline Drive and a short portion of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, fire bosses expected much less erratic fire behavior Friday due to the wetter weather.

"The flame lengths, which have been 3 to 4 feet, are now anticipated to be in the 6-inch to 1-foot range unless influenced by wind over the next couple of operation periods, but dependent on rainfall," the morning briefing said. "This is creating a window of opportunity for fire resources to more effectively contain and expand mop-up operations today."

Word that a drone had been seen led officials Friday to remind the public that "(F)ire aircraft have to be grounded whenever a drone is spotted in the wildfire area."

The drone in question apparently was one used by the Washington Post to obtain footage of the billowing towers of smoke put off by the wildfire. In the newspaper's story that accompanied the footage, the writer stated that the drone flight was 30 miles from the Rocky MTN Fire, far outside the 5-nautical-mile flight restriction in place.

The blaze has been burning in mountain laurel, pine, and oak forests with heavier than average leaf litter and duff.

Due to smoke and firefighting efforts, a short section of Skyline Drive, from Swift Run, mile 65, to Loft Mountain, mile 79, has been closed to travel. Also closed was the Appalachian Trail from Doyles River Overlook (mile 82) to Powell Gap (mile 70). Other trails closed due to the fire include:

* Rocky Mount Trail

* Gap Run Trail

* Onemile Run Trail

* Brown Mountain Trail

* Big Run Portal Trail

* Rocky Mountain Run Trail

* Rockytop Trail

* Big Run Loop

* Austin Mountain Trail

* Lewis Peak Trail

* Patterson Ridge Trail

* Madison Run Spur