Wharton State Forest
Wharton State Forest is the largest state forest in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is the largest single tract of land in the state park system of New Jersey, encompassing approximately of the Pinelands northeast of Hammonton. Its protected ...
in portions of
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
and
Burlington
Burlington may refer to:
Places Canada Geography
* Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador
* Burlington, Nova Scotia
* Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington"
* Burlington, Prince Edward Island
* Burlington Bay, no ...
counties in
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
. The fire began in a remote area of the
Wharton State Forest
Wharton State Forest is the largest state forest in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is the largest single tract of land in the state park system of New Jersey, encompassing approximately of the Pinelands northeast of Hammonton. Its protected ...
, and firefighters suspect it was caused by an illegal campfire found near its origin; it was first spotted from a
fire tower
A fire lookout tower, fire tower or lookout tower, provides housing and protection for a person known as a "fire lookout" whose duty it is to search for wildfires in the wilderness. It is a small building, usually on the summit of a mountain or ...
at 10 AM on Sunday, June 19. However, firefighters' initial attempt to extinguish the fire failed, partly because the inconvenient locations and poor condition of the roads around the fire made it difficult for firefighters to get to, and partly because dry weather and strong wind from the northwest helped the fire spread. By Tuesday, June 21, the fire had spread across parts of
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
Atlantic County
Atlantic County is a county located along the southern coast of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county had a population of 274,534.Galloway Township and the smoke could be seen as far south as Ocean City. The fire burned some 15,000 acres. Trails and campgrounds as well as several roads in the affected area were closed during the fire, and about 50 people camping in the Wharton State Forest were evacuated, but nobody was injured or killed in the fire. The fire was mostly contained as of early 23 June. Trees began to regrow in the area impacted by the fire in July 2022, as the ecosystem is adapted to occasional forest fires.