Fire Rescue News - Barnegat forest fire contained but still burning, not under control
BARNEGAT TOWNSHIP — Fewer firefighters were needed to watch over a still-burning 900-acre Barnegat Township forest fire Tuesday, but the fire still was not under control, officials said.
A Monday evening storm dropped nearly a half-inch of rain on the fire, said Steve Holmes, assistant division fire warden for the New Jersey Forest Fire Service.
“Some places had an inch, some had nothing,” Holmes said.
About a dozen firefighters patrolled the fire’s perimeter Tuesday, after......Continued Reading
40 to 50 had hosed it down on Monday. No crews are working at night.
More dry weather was forecast for through the week, though, and firefighters were still seeing smoke, Holmes said.
A lightning strike started the fire Saturday afternoon, division Fire Warden Bert Plante of the Forest Fire Service said Sunday. The fire was contained between the Ocean-Burlington county boundary and Route 539, Plante said.
Township police also were trying to curb trespassing in private woods within the Ocean Acres development, after several small fires there this year. About once a month since spring began, firefighters have tackled a blaze covering an acre or two in undeveloped parts of Ocean Acres, and police have suspected arson, township administrator Dave Breeden said.
Barnegat police Lt. Patrick Shaffery asked anyone who sees people walking or using all-terrain vehicles in those areas, without permission of the property owners, to call police at 609-698-5000. Offenders face fines of up to $1,000, as well as having vehicles impounded.
The National Weather Service issued a red-flag warning Tuesday for a wide swath in central and southern New Jersey that included the Pinelands region, where the two other fires broke out this week. The agency warning was in effect through Tuesday night,
None of the blazes Tuesday appeared to threaten people or property, firefighters said.
A blaze that started Monday at a firing range on the Army’s portion of Joint Base McGuire-Fort Dix-Lakehurst grew from about 120 acres to nearly 400 acres by Tuesday afternoon.
The fire was smoldering, and smoke from it was blowing toward Ocean County, said Senior Airman David Carbajal, a base spokesman.
The military had cleared fire lines around 1,400 acres surrounding the blaze, and it was not expected to escape those boundaries, Plante said Tuesday.
In Evesham Township, Burlington County, a fire that burned 31/2 acres also continued to smolder Tuesday, although it no longer was considered a threat to nearby homes.
“The fire is boring its way into the turf,” Plante said. “It’s burning like a giant charcoal briquette right now. It’s going to take some time to put that out.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Contact Eric Scott Campbell:
609-289-2483
