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New Jersey wildfire prompts evacuation order, major highway shuts down
According to fire service, over 3,000 residents have been evacuated from the area of the Jones Road Fire in Ocean County and about 1,320 structures remain threatened.
A fire burns near Waretown, N.J. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)
A wildfire in New Jersey has forced residents to evacuate the area and shut down a stretch of a major highway on Tuesday as the wildfire grew to more than 3,200 acres, officials said.
One of the busiest highways in New Jersey, the Garden State Parkway, saw closures due to the spread of wildfire and the stretch between Barnegat and Lacey townships was closed and the traffic was diverted, Associated Press reported.
According to New Jersey Forest Fire Service, over 3,000 residents have been evacuated from the area of the Jones Road Fire in Ocean County and about 1,320 structures remain threatened. The fire service added that 5% of the wildfire has been contained till now.
A drone view shows smoke rising from a wildfire in Pine Beach, New Jersey, US, in this still image obtained from social media video. Instagram @doherty.kev/Kevin Doherty/via REUTERS.
Authorities said that power was out in Barnegat Township and a mandatory evacuation order was issued for an unknown number of structures in Lacey Township. Shelters from the wildfire were opened at a church and high school in New Jersey.
The New Jersey Forest Fire Service, in a post on X, detailed the resources deployed to contain the wildfire: Forest Fire Service fire engines, bulldozers and ground crews, numerous local fire, rescue, county and state cooperators.
WILDFIRE UPDATE: Jones Road Wildfire – Ocean & Lacey Townships, Ocean County
New Jersey Forest Fire Service remains on scene of a wildfire burning in Ocean & Lacey Townships, Ocean County.
SIZE & CONTAINMENT
🔥 3,200 acres
🔥 5% contained pic.twitter.com/nxdzQNQ5Ot— New Jersey Forest Fire Service (@njdepforestfire) April 23, 2025
The fire officials said that wildfire in Greenwood Forest Wildlife Management Area burnt more than 4.6 square miles (11.9 square kilometers) of land. The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained and there were no immediate reports of injuries, AP reported.
The fire service announced in a post on Tuesday at about 12:30pm that the wildfire was burning in Greenwood Forest Wildlife Management Area in Barnegat Township, New Jersey. The fire service has listed the region in the “high” fire risk zone.
In less than a week’s time, the blaze in New Jersey is the second major forest wildfire as drones have been prohibited in the fire zone by the fire services.
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