Hundreds of wildfires continue to burn across N.J. as severe drought continues

Most of the several hundred New Jersey wildfires that ignited in the last month continue to burn as the Garden State experiences an ongoing drought.
Several new fires ignited over the weekend as state firefighters continued imposing red-flag warnings, cautioning people against activities that could start wildfires.
New Jersey’s 21 counties remained under an elevated risk for wildfires on Monday. State forest woodlands in South Jersey are at the greatest risk of wildfires, according to a New Jersey Forest Fire Service map.
Much of New Jersey has not seen measurable amounts of rain in more than three weeks. Meteorologists predict these conditions are likely to continue this week though there is a slight chance of rain Wednesday.
The New Jersey Forest Fire Service said as of Sept. 15, it has responded to 334 wildfires that have burned across 650 acres. As of Monday, 242 remain active and have not been declared extinguished, state officials said. State firefighters could not say whether or not any previous records had been broken.
State fire officials have extended a Stage 3 fire restriction, prohibiting all forms of outdoor burning except for those contained in an elevated stove using only propane, natural gas, gas or electricity. East to northeast winds between 5 and 10 miles per hour Monday continued to create conditions where forestfires could spread due to the wind.
“Vegetation remains very dry and could potentially become fuel for fires,” the Forest Fire Service wrote on its Facebook page. “These conditions will support the spread of any fires that ignite, which could quickly become difficult to control.”
Meanwhile, firefighters worked to contain several fires that began burning over the weekend.
Crews from 22 municipalities across Essex County joined the fight against a wildfire that began burning in Livingston on Saturday. On Sunday, the blaze was reported to have been 90% contained after growing to 192 acres in size, state firefighters said.
At least three other wildfires were reported over the weekend. One of those fires spread across an acre of the 53-acre Forest Preserve located on Drew University’s Madison campus.
In Gloucester County, residents of Glassboro’s Elsmere Park section, about 1 mile from Rowan University’s campus, were warned about a fire burning in the surrounding woods. The fire, as of Monday, stretched across 16 acres and was 80% contained, state officials told NJ Advance Media.
Farther south, a wildfire was reported in the Seaville section of Upper Township in Cape May County on Monday morning. The blaze reached 3 acres in size before being deemed fully contained, officials said.
As of last Monday, New Jersey recorded over 900 wildfires for the year, four of which were deemed “major” in severity, each burning over 100 acres.
New Jersey has had below-average rainfall during the past five months. While the fall wildfire season runs mid-October through mid-November, the threat arrived sooner this year because of the long stretches of warm and extremely dry weather.
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Eric Conklin may be reached at [email protected].