How Prescribed Burns Kept Southern Ocean Safe In Recent Wildfire

LITTLE EGG HARBOR, NJ — A wildfire that struck Southern Ocean County on April 15 burned through 1,607 acres. But thanks to a recent prescribed burning, the fire was contained and unable to progress further, state officials said.

The recent fire, dubbed the "Log Swamp Fire," burned parts of Bass River State Forest, the Stafford Forge Wildlife Management Area and the Warren Grove Bombing Range, according to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service.

It, along with other recent wildfires in Passaic County and nearby in Manchester, are still smoldering as of Tuesday and will not be entirely out until considerable rainfall occurs, Forest Fire Service Assistant Division Firewarden Bill Love explained in a call with reporters.

READ MORE: No Homes Lost: How Firefighters Prevented 'Catastrophe' In Manchester

April is peak wildfire season in New Jersey. "This is essentially our Super Bowl," Love said.

And this year, due to dry conditions, the potential for fires is worse. So far in 2023, 517 wildfires have burned through 7,608 acres, state officials said.

In the Log Swamp Fire, an abundance of pygmy pines served as a volatile fuel for the flames to spread.

But earlier in the year, a prescribed burn was held in the area, so plenty of the dry vegetation that serves as fuel was already burned.

Both the Little Egg Harbor fire and the Manchester fire took place along Route 539, an area that gets a lot of attention with prescribed burns. A smaller fire burned off Route 539 at Stafford Forge in March. Read more: 418-Acre Wildfire Contained In Little Egg Harbor

Restrictions are in place Tuesday as the potential for wildfires is strong due to dry, gusty conditions and another fire burns in Burlington County. Read more: Red Flag Wildfire Warning Issued In 9 NJ Counties As New Fire Burns

No causes of the fires have been determined as of yet, but Love noted that 99 percent of wildfires are caused by humans.