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West Milford wildfire 10% contained; officials address line-of-duty death

As of 7 p.m. Sunday, the fire was 10% contained but had spread over 3,000 acres.

Tom Krosnowski, Rose Shannon and Amanda Eustice

Nov 11, 2024, 3:37 AM

Updated 23 days ago

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The West Milford wildfire, which has become New Jersey's biggest wildfire of the season, increased in size Sunday.
As of 7 p.m. Sunday, the fire was 10% contained but had spread over 3,000 acres.
In West Milford, the town has declared a local state of emergency. The Veteran’s Day celebration was postponed as the fire had reached the road line in some parts of town.
“We may not actually get this done [Sunday], possibly not even [Monday],” said Chief Bill Donnelly, of the New Jersey Forest Fire Service. “Hopefully by the end of the week, we can secure our control lines and make sure the fire stays where we want it to.”
First responders from across the state were called to help contain the fire.
Officials said since Saturday, the fire has burned in the area of East Shore Road and Greenwood Lake Turnpike in West Milford. It began in New York and crossed state lines into New Jersey when the winds changed.
An 18-year-old died in Orange County Saturday while attempting to put out the fire.
Dariel Vasquez, a parks and recreation aid who was employed by the New York State Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation Department was killed trying to extinguish a fire in the Sterling Forest in Greenwood Lake, New York.
New York State Police are investigating Vasquez's death.
“We try to take as many precautions as we can to mitigate some of the hazards that are out there in the wildland fire environment, but occasionally accidents do happen,” said New York State Forest Ranger Jeremy Oldroyd.
“There's a young man that’s out there doing some really hard work,” said Donnelly. “I would definitely say New Jersey sends its condolences to his family.”
As of Sunday night, there were 10 structures threatened in New Jersey, including two homes and eight structures in the Long Pond Ironworks Historic District.
Fourteen structures were threatened on East Shore Road in Greenwood Lake, New York.
Officials said the remote, mountainous area has made it challenging for crews to safely fight the massive fire. In New Jersey, two homes are threatened, along with eight historic buildings.
There were no current plans for evacuations as of Sunday night, but residents remained unsure.
“We don't know what to do,” said Sharon Burrell, of Ringwood. “Do you pack a go bag? [Fire officials] didn't seem as scared [as us], so I guess I do feel a little better. One of the things that drew us to this area is the forested sections. We still love Ringwood. We just hope we don't lose a lot of it.”
East Shore Road remained closed from Awosting Road to Greenwood Lake Turnpike. Beech Road also remained closed.
All trails in Long Pond Ironworks State Park and Tranquility Ridge remained closed.
The next update is scheduled for Monday morning.