Aiello-Lammens added that the burning ash in the atmosphere is going to have a negative impact on people’s health. There have been reports of compromised air quality from as far as Maryland and the New York City area. But the impact won’t be on the scale of the Western Canadian fires that traveled to the eastern seaboard in 2023.
Kearns, who lives in Bergen County, said he has experienced the impact of smoke from the Jones Road fire.
“We received an air quality warning up here,” he said. “It’s affecting the region. It’s not just affecting the Jersey Shore area down in Ocean County.”
Several hours of consistent rain would be needed to douse the fire, according to Aiello-Lammens. He recalled a 2024 wildfire near the New Jersey-New York border.
”After a couple of days of substantial rainfall, that really helped out in the firefighting process,” he said.
Officials express gratitude amid the emergency
The fire destroyed a family-owned garage door business and several vehicles, but it spared homes and lives.
William J. Donnelly, chief of the state Forest Fire Service, said there have been no reported injuries among those fighting the blaze, but their vehicles have felt the effects of the fire.
“We burnt the engine out of one truck [that] caught on fire. We melted some door panels, our door stickers. We melted some mirrors, cracked some glass,” he said. “The trucks take a lot of abuse, but that’s what we designed them for.”
Officials thanked emergency workers for their efforts in fighting the blaze, and for evacuating people to safety. Between Waretown and Lacey Township, there were about 7,000 people who were ordered to leave their homes, including Waretown Mayor Dr. Ben LoParo.
“We had a voluntary evacuation, then it turned to mandatory,” he told WHYY News. “I called home [and] said, ‘We have to pack up.’
Even before he evacuated with his family, LoParo said he was letting residents know they would have to leave the area.
“I actually went around the plaza in town and told everyone they had to evacuate. It was mandatory,” he said. “I went to the Shoprite and all the other stores, and I was calling my neighbors.”
By Wednesday evening, LoParo was back in his home, where he took a moment to take a breather.
“I went in my office to do paperwork, and that’s when it kind of hit me, and I just relaxed,” he said. “We went to bed early last night. We were tired.”
WHYY News reporter Emily Neil contributed reporting.
