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Officials: West Milford wildfire now 35% contained; 720 acres impacted

Officials say that five structures have been evacuated as a precaution. No injuries were reported.

Matt Trapani

Apr 13, 2023, 10:46 AM

Updated 607 days ago

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The New Jersey Forest Fire Service says that a wildfire in West Milford is now 35% contained.
The fire was first reported on Wednesday. Officials said initially on Thursday that it was 40% contained. They later said that the fire was only 25% contained. By 11 p.m. Thursday, they said it was 35% contained.
"We had a spot fire that was picked up by our helicopter, so basically what we've done is we've backed up and we've built a new box around the fire. We're in the process of crews going indirect and we're planning to tie it into the Echo Lake,” said Bill Donnelly, of the Forest Fire Service.
Officials say that five structures have been evacuated as a precaution. No injuries were reported.
This is the largest wildfire in the northern part of the state since 2010. The fire has impacted at least 720 acres of land. Officials say that it is difficult to fight due to the rocky terrain of the area.
“We’ve got very steep conditions. We have to work by hand in many instances. We can use some equipment, but it’s certainly challenging,” John Cecil, assistant commissioner at the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection said Thursday afternoon.
This fire is one of several wildfires around the state over the last few days. Other fires were reported in Bridgewater, Edison, East Orange, Manalapan, Roxbury and Saddle Brook.
A wildfire in Manchester consumed more than 3,800 acres of land this week. It was fully contained by Thursday morning.