The Northeast kept a wary eye on dozens of fires that killed at least one person and continued to burn Tuesday amid bone-dry weather, while much larger and more destructive fires came under relative control in California.
Firefighters in Massachusetts worked to contain several fires as strong winds and drought conditions continued. The National Weather Service issued a red flag warning for much of the state and parts of Connecticut, saying conditions were critical and fires could rapidly spread.
Massachusetts officials said all of the 200 or so fires they have dealt with this month were caused by human behavior, and Gov. Maura Healey urged people to avoid lighting fires.
“Now is not the time to burn leaves. Now is not the time to go outside and light a fire,” she told reporters in Middleton.
Some firefighters have been injured, and one blaze near the New York-New Jersey border killed a parks employee over the weekend. The fire had grown to more than 7.5 square miles (20 square kilometers) and was 10% contained Tuesday afternoon.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday announced fire restrictions that are in effect through the end of November. The ban prohibits bush fires used to dispose of debris and bonfires higher than 3 feet (1 meter). Contained campfires are still allowed in most of the state, though outdoor grilling has already been banned in New York City.
In California, firefighters made further progress against a blaze in Ventura County, northwest of Los Angeles, that broke out Wednesday and quickly exploded in size because of the dry Santa Ana winds. The blaze, dubbed the Mountain fire, was about half contained Tuesday.
The 32-square-mile (83-square-kilometer) fire is largely “buttoned up,” county Fire Chief Dustin Gardner said Monday evening. The fire forced thousands of residents to flee and destroyed more than 200 structures, most of them houses, and damaged more than 90, officials said. The cause is under investigation.
Residents returned to their homes in Nevada on Monday after a wind-whipped wildfire spread quickly south of Reno, destroying one home and damaging several other buildings. About 200 firefighters aided by light rain quelled flames near the main highway to Lake Tahoe.
Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Cedar Attanasio in New York; Nick Perry in Meredith, New Hampshire; and Christopher Weber in Los Angeles.
The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. The Trucker Media Group is subscriber of The Associated Press has been granted the license to use this content on TheTrucker.com and The Trucker newspaper in accordance with its Content License Agreement with The Associated Press.
