An 18-year-old New York state employee was killed while battling a wildfire in Orange County’s Sterling Forest Saturday.
Dariel Vasquez, an aid working for the New York State Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation Department, was helping mitigate the forest fire when he was killed, New York State Police said in a statement. Police are investigating the incident.
“I am deeply saddened by the passing of one of our New York State Parks employees while responding to a wildfire in Orange County yesterday,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement Sunday. “My prayers go out to his family, friends and coworkers during this difficult time.”
Wildfires continue to rage amid warm, dry conditions across the New England area, where 11 million people remain under fire alerts Sunday afternoon. Cities under fire alerts include Boston and Hartford.
Multiple fires are burning in Orange County, where County Executive Steve Neuhaus is encouraging residents living near the fires to have an evacuation plan.
“At this time, the Incident Command team has not indicated that evacuations are imminent, but we continue to monitor the situation carefully,” Neuhaus said in an update Sunday.
Orange County’s Sterling Forest fire is also impacting Passaic County, New Jersey — where it’s been coined the Jennings Creek Wildfire, according to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service. The fire has spread to 2,500 acres and is 0% contained as of Sunday afternoon. It’s cause is under investigation.
“The Forest Fire Service remains on scene with fire engines and ground crews,” the NJ Forest Fire Service said on X. “A Forest Fire Service helicopter capable of dropping 350 gallons of water is on scene.”
Elsewhere in Passaic County, the 175-acre Cannonball 3 Wildfire is 75% contained. It’s cause is also under investigation.
A man was arrested after he was accused of starting a fire in Jackson Township, New Jersey, the forest fire service said in a news release. The man allegedly fired ammunition from a shotgun, igniting the fire behind a berm near a rifle club. The man was charged with arson and violation of the regulatory provisions relating to firearms.
In Massachusetts, a brush fire is burning in Lynn Woods Reservation, a forest park in Essex County. The park is closed to the public until further notice, the City of Lynn said in a statement on X.
Drone video from the park shows smoke rising from a raging fire.
“Falling trees, air quality, and the threat of additional fires continue to pose significant dangers to the public,” the city said.
On Sunday, dry vegetation, 25 mph wind gusts and relative humidity around 40% will increase the risk of any new or existing fires to rapidly spread. An approaching cold front will bring the chance of rain and higher humidity later Sunday evening.
A slow-moving front will continue advancing east Sunday afternoon, bringing much-needed moisture to the eastern third of the country, which includes the Northeast.
Showers will move into the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic later Sunday evening and overnight. Rainfall totals will be relatively light, ranging from 0.5 to 1 inch.
This forecasted rain will likely break the record streak of consecutive dry days in Philadelphia. The current streak is 42 days, shattering the previous record of 29 set in 1874.
