UPDATE: Fire Claims Over 220 Acres Near Joint Base in Burlington County: Report

A forest fire has claimed 220 acres of land near Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in Burlington County, Joint Base Senior Airman Lauren Pitts said Thursday morning.

Firefighters from the Joint Base, Burlington County and the New Jersey State Forest Fire Service were combating the blaze, which was 80 percent contained.

There was no perceived threat to the surrounding area, but there were some voluntary evacuations of homes in Pemberton, Pitts said. There was no mandatory evacuation order in place.

The fire began as a small brush fire around 2:30 p.m. Wednesday afternoon before spiraling out of control.

The cause was unknown, but Pitts said previous fires of this nature had been known to start during mortar training when conditions were dry and windy, as they were just before the fire began.

Patch will update as more information becomes available.