The Jones Road Wildfire has now scorched more than 20 square miles in southern New Jersey. As of early Thursday morning, the fire
was 50% contained
according to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service.
The fire that started Tuesday could grow to be the “largest fire in New Jersey in 20 years,” said the head of
New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection
, Shawn Latourette. A wildfire in 2007 burned 26 square miles.
As many as 5,000 people were forced to evacuate their neighborhoods Tuesday night as the fire raced toward homes in Ocean County and shut down part of the Garden State Parkway.
The fire started around 9:45 a.m. EDT in the Greenwood Forest Wildlife Management Area and exploded in size by Tuesday night, threatening more than 1,300 structures in the Ocean and Lacey townships, according to the New Jersey Fire Service.
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Wednesday morning, all evacuation orders were lifted for Lacey and Ocean townships, the cities’ police departments announced.
Acting Governor Tahesha Way
declared a state of emergency
in Ocean County, but said no homes had been damaged. The fire service announced that one commercial building was destroyed, as well as some outbuildings and vehicles.
At the height of Tuesday evening’s rush hour, the fire shut down a stretch of the Garden State Parkway between the Barnegat and Lacey townships, creating traffic gridlock as residents tried to evacuate.
Several other roads
in the area were also shut down.
The Parkway was
reopened Wednesday
morning in both directions.
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Jersey Central Power And Light shut off electricity to about 25,000 customers,
saying on X
that it was at the request of the Forest Fire Service, for the safety of crews battling the fire. Officials said crews were out Wednesday surveying damage and power would be returned to about 6,700 customers in Lacey Township by Wednesday afternoon. Restoration to other areas would be based on the ongoing surveys.
No word yet on the cause of the fire, fire officials said an investigation is underway, but parts of South Jersey are in moderate to severe drought. Rain is expected tomorrow when a cold front will bring some showers Friday night into Saturday.
This is a developing story; continue to check back here for updates.
