Fire Rescue News - Ocean County forest fire burns 480 acres, fire crews stamp out hot spots
By ERIC SCOTT CAMPBELL, Staff Writer | Posted: Sunday, March 21, 2010 | 2 comments
A forest fire in western Barnegat Township has burned 480 acres since the blaze began, state fire warden Bert Plante said Sunday.
Plante, division fire warden of the New Jersey Forest Fire Service, said fire crews expect another 60 acres near the east side of the fire to burn before the blaze is extinguished.
"A fire of this size, we don't put it out, we control it," Plante said. "Once we're satisfied with the amount of black, we let the middle burn."...Continue Reading
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Firefighters from across the region Sunday continued to extinguish hot spots as they worked to contain the fire.
The fire surprised members of the The Royal Flush Hunt Club, which leases 200 acres at the northwest border of the fire.
Club member Duane O'Hara, of Toms River, and other club members arrived around 6:30 a.m. Sunday to go hunting during the extended pheasant seaon. "We saw smoke in the distance and it started getting bigger and bigger," O'Hara said.
Despite the fire, O'Hara had shot three pheasants before 9:45 a.m.
"It's too hot to be hunting. I want to be home working on the filter to my pool," O'Hara said.
Meanwhile, about 60 residents who were evacuated were allowed to return to their homes by 9 p.m. Saturday.
"It was pretty quiet through the night," said Rusty Fenton, an Egg Harbor City firefighter who worked from 3 p.m. to 8 a.m. before a new shift released him Sunday morning. "There were a few hot spots."
Dozens of firefighters convened in the parking lot of the Paramount Escapes community on Route 72 in Stafford Township to switch shifts and plan the day's attack.
"My guess is it's probably contained, but we'll go up in the helicopter to check," Plante said. "Hopefully, we've got black around the whole fire."
The day's weather forecast originally called for rain today, but the rain is now expected Monday.
"As long as the winds are light, it'll cut down of the intensity of the burn," Plante said.
As for the cause of the fire, Plante said, "99-plus percent of fires in New Jersey are started by people. (The origin point) was along a dirt road, no railroad, no lightning. You start narrowing it down. The question is will we find an incendiary device?"
The fire was first reported after 1 p.m. Saturday.
