Topline
A devastating wildfire that started Tuesday night in a heavily forested section of southern New Jersey has spread to nearly 4,000 acres, state officials said Wednesday, marking an unusually large East Coast wildfire, which scientists believe are becoming more frequent as climate change brings more frequent droughts.
A wildfire in southern New Jersey has burned roughly 4,000 acres, and scientists warn fires on the … [+]
Key Facts
The fire in Manchester Township, New Jersey—roughly 50 miles east of Philadelphia—spread to 3,859 acres and is 50% contained, the state’s Forest Fire Service announced in an update Wednesday.
The fire, called the Jimmy’s Waterhole Fire, has threatened 20 buildings, and led officials to close several roads and issue evacuation orders affecting 170 homes in the rural town (no deaths or injuries have been reported as a result of the fire).
New Jersey State Parks Commissioner John Cecil told local ABC affiliate ABC7 the fire carried 200-foot flames as officials worked to put it out Tuesday night and Wednesday morning—marking a rare fire in a state that typically does not see the kind of devastating wildfires that have become increasingly common on the West Coast and the Rocky Mountains.
Surprising Fact
Scientists, however, believe dry conditions made worse by climate change will likely cause East Coast wildfires, particularly in the Northeast, to escalate in heavily forested areas, which have historically been protected by wetter weather patterns. That’s because drought conditions are expected to become more frequent, with longer dry stretches between heavy rainfall events, even as scientists say climate change will bring more rain to the Northeast over the course of a given year (southern New Jersey is facing abnormally dry conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor). Scientists also believe the effects of long-term exposure to wildfire smoke will harm more people in the eastern U.S. than the western part of the country, largely due to higher populations in the East and the ability of smoke to spread thousands of miles from its source, according to a 2021 study in the journal GeoHealth.
Key Background
New Jersey’s Pine Barrens, the rural stretch of forestland in the southern part of the state where the Jimmy’s Waterhole Fire is burning, was also the site of the largest wildfire in New Jersey history, which consumed more than 183,000 acres and caused roughly $8.5 million in property losses almost exactly 60 years ago. Another 11,000 acres of the state’s Pine Barrens burned in April 2019. The fire comes in the middle of an early-season warm streak throughout the Midwest and East Coast, bringing temperatures into the mid-80s this week and potentially breaking daily heat records in several cities, including New York City. The National Weather Service has issued a “special weather statement” for the entire state of New Jersey, as well as in Delaware and eastern Maryland, warning low humidity, gusty winds and dry conditions will increase the risk of wildfire.
What To Watch For
The NWS’s special weather statement extends into southern New York, Ohio, and parts of Georgia, Indiana, Illinois and Virginia, while the agency has also warned of “critical fire weather conditions” in lower New England, Pennsylvania, northern Maryland, and across the Midwest and Great Plains, including from Michigan to eastern Colorado. The weather service’s Chicago and Milwaukee branches have both warned strong winds could cause “rapid spread” of fires.
Further Reading
Heat Records Expected To Fall Across Midwest, Northeast This Week—Here’s Where It Will Be Hottest (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2023/04/12/rare-new-jersey-wildfire-burns-nearly-4000-acres-and-east-coast-fires-may-become-more-common/