Food, Water, Offers Of Showers: Fire Officials Praise Manchester, Lakehurst Response

MANCHESTER, NJ — A week after a 3,859-acre wildfire forced the evacuation of 170 homes and challenged firefighters, state officials were expressing gratitude for the support they received from the community.

The wildfire, dubbed the Jimmy's Waterhole fire by the New Jersey Forest Fire Service, was declared 100 percent contained on April 13. But portions of it continue to smolder, and forest fire service officials said it will continue to burn for some time.

The cause of the fire has not yet been determined, said Greg McLaughlin, chief of the forest fire service.

"We have secured what we believe were points of origin," McLaughlin said, and the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office and the Ocean County Sheriff's Department are investigating.

The 2023 wildfire season has gotten off to a busy start, and the Jimmy's Waterhole fire posed significant biggest challenges because of its proximity to so many homes and neighborhoods and a busy travel corridor along Routes 70 and 539.

"Fire doesn't look at town boundaries," McLaughlin said. The decision to evacuate the homes, especially those in Lakehurst along Division Street, was made jointly with local officials.

"We look at what are the implications of moving the residents," he said. "Are the residents mobile?"

"These are some of the tricky elements," McLaughlin said.

Shutting down the roads was necessary, he said, to make the working conditions safer for the firefighters.

"We're sensitive that we work in the most densely populated state in the nation," McLaughlin said, adding they try to reopen roads as soon as possible. "We do appreciate the public's cooperation on these matters."

McLaughlin said the community's support went well beyond coping with the road closures and the need to evacuate.

"The support from local residents in the communities where these fires occurred has been overwhelming," he said Tuesday during a news conference providing updates on three large fires, including the Manchester fire.

"The outpouring of food and water and goodwill was so appreciated," McLaughlin said.

Local restaurants and delis brought sandwiches and water and meals to the Whiting Fire Company, which was serving as the command center during the fight.

The offers went well beyond that.

"People called and offered their homes for us to take showers, offering their couches and beds" for firefighters, who had little downtime as they moved around from battle to battle, McLaughlin said.

The Manchester fire started on Tuesday, just hours after a smaller fire in Brick Township, and took just shy of two days to fully contain.

That support only intensified their desire to make sure the community came through the fire unscathed, McLaughlin said.

John Cecil, the assistant commissioner overseeing the Department of Environmental Protection's Division of State Parks, Forests and Historic Sites, said the partnerships between the state forest fire service and local fire companies and first responders was critical to the success.

Manchester Township Police Chief Robert Dolan and Councilman Joseph Hankins, speaking at the news conference while firefighters were still working on containment, expressed their gratitude to the community as well.

"The way the community has come together with food and water, I couldn't be more proud," Dolan said.