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Forest fire in Rockaway, New Jersey, 30 percent contained at Craigmeur Lookout

Posted on by Kennedy
Forest fire in Rockaway, New Jersey, 30 percent contained at Craigmeur Lookout

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UPDATE: The multi-acre wildfire in Rockaway Township is 50% contained

The so-called “Craigmeur Lookout Wildfire” began Thursday evening, and as of Friday morning the “wildfire in the area of ​​Notch Road in Rockaway Twp., Morris County” was estimated to be at 65 acres. Updates from the New Jersey Forest Fire Service on its Facebook page Friday showed the wildfires had expanded to 118 acres by late afternoon.

According to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service's Facebook post, the wildfire had reached 140 acres and was 30 percent contained as of 8 p.m. Friday. The number of structures threatened (13) and the number of structures evacuated (eight) on Green Pond Road remained the same as reported earlier Friday.

The Forest Fire Department also said Green Pond Road remains closed in the Craigmeur Ski Resort area.

Early Friday morning, Eric Weber, the department's assistant wildfire warden, said they estimated the fire's size at about 65 acres, but they were still collecting data “now that the sun is shining,” an update posted to Facebook around 11:25 a.m confirmed the fire covered 65 hectares and was 10% contained, with three structures at risk.

The wildfire service's next update on Facebook at 4 p.m. said the fire was about 10% contained but spread over 118 acres. The update also said 13 buildings were threatened and eight buildings were evacuated. And along with this update, the Forest Fire Department said Green Pond Road was closed in the Craigmeur Ski Resort area.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

The Rockaway Township Fire Department was notified of the fire around 8:30 p.m. Thursday, according to Weber, who said they worked on the fire throughout the night.

According to a post on Facebook, the service deployed fire engines, bulldozers, ground crews and two helicopters, each capable of dropping 350 gallons of water.

“We are establishing fire lines, improving fire lines and trying to achieve containment as quickly as possible,” Weber said. “We want it to happen by tonight, but we will see, the conditions today, red flags as to whether that will be possible or not.”

According to a Facebook post from the Rockaway Township Fire Department, the Rockaway Township and Green Pond Volunteer Fire Departments are assisting the Wildfire Department in containing this fire.

“Remember that all outdoor burning is prohibited, including fireworks,” the post said. “If you see active flames in the forest, call 911 immediately.”

This fire comes about 10 days after a wildfire burned 77 acres near Jacobs Road in Rockaway Township, and as fire danger remains high across the state after weeks of drought.

Red flag warning

On Friday morning, the National Weather Service issued an advisory warning that “critical fire weather conditions are expected or occurring,” with a combination of high winds, low relative humidity and dry fuels that “will result in significantly increased fire growth.” Potential.”

Passaic, Hudson, Bergen, Essex, Union, Sussex, Warren and Morris counties are all included in the red flag warning.

In Morris County, the NWS is forecasting wind gusts up to 30 miles per hour and temperatures in the mid to upper 70s, saying, “Any fire that develops will catch and spread quickly. Outdoor burning is not recommended.”

“The fuels are dry, right, we call the forest 'fuels,' and they are dry and susceptible to fire, so the dry conditions that we're experiencing would definitely contribute to the size of this fire,” Weber said. “We still have fire restrictions. We've obviously been busy, you've seen us the last few days, so be extra careful with fire and we'll see what the day with this red flag brings.”

The warning is valid until Friday evening, 7 p.m.

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