Firefighters in Berkeley Township, New Jersey, have made significant progress in containing a forest fire burning in the southern New Jersey Pinelands. As of midday on Wednesday, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service reported that the blaze was 80% contained. The fire, which has scorched about 0.3 square miles (0.8 square kilometers) of land, occurred in an area known as Fisher’s Pit, characterized by uninhabited stretches of scrub pines and sandy soil, nearby several neighborhoods and a school.
The fire ignited shortly before 5 p.m. on Monday close to the Garden State Parkway near Exit 77. Fortunately, no buildings were in immediate danger due to the blaze. According to Jeremy Webber, a supervising forest fire warden, the fire was a result of someone attempting to extinguish a campfire improperly, as confirmed by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office.
