Wildfires

News 4’s Sarah Wallace got exclusive access to a major firefighting effort to control the Jennings Creek Fire. 

Don’t be surprised if you smell smoke from time to time this week as current fires burn and new ones flare up. After meager rainfall Sunday night, we’ve been back in high fire danger mode since Tuesday.  Most of the area is under a fire weather watch, while a red flag warning is in place for Connecticut’s Fairfield County....

Latest Forecast From Storm Team 4

New Jersey’s governor declared a drought warning. Black Hawk helicopters scooped water from a lake to dump on a burning forest in New York state. A park in Manhattan caught fire. And authorities in two states revealed criminal charges Wednesday against people accused of setting some of the wildfires that have plagued the northeast U.S. in recent weeks. The actions came as conditions...

In a shocking twist on Long Island, police said a volunteer firefighter intentionally set a brush fire in Medford on Tuesday, and has since been charged. NBC New York’s Pei-Sze Cheng reports.

Unrelenting wildfires continue to rage across the tri-state, as firefighters slowly get a handle on the Jennings Creek Fire along the New York and New Jersey border. It’s 30 percent contained but thousands of acres are still burning. And because of the lack of rain and dropping reservoirs, New Jersey issued a drought warning — here’s what that means for...

At least two brush fires broke out at an upper Manhattan park, FDNY officials said, one of which was not yet under control as of Wednesday evening.

With wildfires burning after its driest September and October ever, New Jersey will issue a drought warning, a step that could eventually lead to mandatory water restrictions if significant rain doesn’t fall soon. The state Department of Environmental Protection held an online hearing Tuesday on the conditions. But they would not answer questions, including whether any part of the state is...

A volunteer firefighter on Long Island was arrested Tuesday night after allegedly admitting to setting one of the brush fires that swept through the town of Medford earlier in the day, according to a local official. Investigators were battling nearly a half-dozen small brush fires in Medford Tuesday. They put them out by the evening after fighting them for roughly…

The battle against wildfires in the tri-state got even tougher, as crews were battling flames being fueled by gusty winds. New fires have popped up in Suffolk County on Long Island as well. NBC New York’s Pei-Sze Cheng reports

The dry, windy conditions are fueling another day of wildfires across the area, as New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced a burn ban for the entire state through the end of November. It comes as crews try to get a handle on the Jennings Creek Wildfire burning on the New York-New Jersey border, as it remains only 20% contained. NBC...

With wildfires burning after its driest September and October ever, New Jersey will issue a drought warning, a step that could eventually lead to mandatory water restrictions if significant rain doesn’t fall soon. The state Department of Environmental Protection held an online hearing Tuesday on the conditions. But they would not answer questions, including whether any part of the state is...

After meager rainfall Sunday night, we’re back to extreme fire danger in the tri-state area Tuesday.  A red flag warning is in place for the New York City metro area, the Hudson Valley, Catskills, Connecticut and Long Island. Elsewhere, the fire danger remains very high. Check the latest weather alerts for your neighborhood. Unfortunately, there is no appreciable rain in sight...

New wildfires burned Tuesday across the Northeast, adding to a series of blazes that have come amid very dry weather and killed at least one person, while much larger fires raged in California and other western states. Heavy smoke led to poor air quality and health advisories for parts of New Jersey and New York, including New York City. Check the...

Latest Forecast From Storm Team 4

The Jennings Creek wildfire straddling the New York-New Jersey border has incinerated 5,000 acres, and it’s not the only fire burning, with several others torching lands across the tri-state. It has taken up so many resources that officials in a New Jersey town had to postpone its Veterans Day parade, because the town’s firefighters are needed on the front lines...

The township of West Milford, New Jersey, will not have a Veterans Day celebration on Monday, as fire crews and first responders battle with the wildfires affecting the region, the local Veterans of Foreign Wars chapter announced. Instead, the town will hold its Veterans Day ceremony on Sunday, Nov. 24, at 11 a.m. in Veterans Park. “Due to the current…

An 18-year-old New York parks employee died Saturday while battling one of many wildfires burning through several thousand acres across the tri-state. Dariel Vasquez had been deployed to Sterling Forest in Orange County, which borders New Jersey’s Passaic County. He was in Passaic where the so-called Jennings Creek Wildfire was first reported on Saturday. At some point during its...

Multiple government agencies confirmed the state forest ranger died in Orange County, New York, after a tree in the area of the fire fell on him. News 4’s Jessica Cunnington reports. 

Firefighters across the tri-state are responding to at least half a dozen fires responsible for filling the skies with smoke and worsening air quality. News 4’s Melissa Colorado reports.