JERSEY CITY, N.J. (PIX11) — While officials investigate the cause of Tuesday’s seven-alarm fire at a Jersey City recycling facility, authorities warned that Wednesday’s warm and dry weather could spark more fires in the New York City area.
“Dry air will combine with increasing northwest winds to create conditions more conducive for fire spread from late this morning until 7 PM tonight, 4/12. These conditions can aid fire spread if ignition occurs,” the NYC Office of Emergency Management tweeted.
High winds and dry air helped ignite the blaze at the Reliable Paper Recycling on Craven Avenue in Jersey City, where crews were still putting out hot spots Wednesday morning. There were no injuries reported.
“In my 40-plus years, we’ve only had one and that was back in the 80s. But It’s highly unusual to get a fire to that extent. We got calls from our counterparts over in New York City about black smoke,” Jersey City Office of Emergency Management Director Greg Kierce said.
Several brush fires popped up across the Garden State Tuesday evening.
More than 2,500 acres burned in a wildfire off of Route 539 in Manchester Township in Ocean County at around 9:30 p.m., officials said. The blaze forced mandatory evacuations in Lakehurst near Division Street, Route 70, Horicon Ave, and Beckerville Road, authorities said.
In Teaneck, a firefighter suffered smoke inhalation battling a brush fire that broke out near Teaneck Road and Degraw Avenue at around 7:20 p.m., officials said. Authorities also contained a blaze in Howell Township around Fort Plains Road near the Toscana Development, officials said.
