A wildfire burned through 617 acres of land in New Jersey on Sunday night, WPVI reported.
The fire was first noticed at about 4.p.m. local time on Sunday, and by Monday morning, it was reported to be 40% contained, WPVI reported. Firefighters from the New Jersey Forest Fire Service worked to bring the fire under control while structural firefighters from departments throughout the area worked to prevent the fire from damaging any of the houses in the area, according to officials. (RELATED: California Wildfire Now Burning Roughly 2,000 Acres, Now 45% Contained)
No one was injured in the fire and no homes were damaged as of Monday morning, WPVI reported. However, a voluntary evacuation facility was set up at a local high school.
WILDFIRE: About 900 acres are burning near Ballinger Creek. At 8pm, officials reported fire was zero percent contained. No injuries reported. Structure protection is in place to protect any threatened homes. Cause still under investigation @6abc https://t.co/AHJ0xro1H8 pic.twitter.com/7KLgzCPG5S
— Jaclyn Lee (@JaclynLeeTV) May 17, 2021
Rob Gill, the forest fire warden with the New Jersey Forest Fire Service, offered a hypothesis as to what happened, noting that the fire occurred during the latter part of what is known as fire season.
“It varies depending on the piece of ground where a fire can happen,” Gill said, according to WPVI. “It’ll vary from a quarter acre to a larger fire like this one. It all depends on the ground, fuel type, terrain. There are several factors that go into what determines the size of a fire.”
The official cause of the fire is currently under investigation.