New Jersey officials announced that a 19-year old man has been charged with arson in connection with the Jones Road wildfire that started on April 22 and has spread throughout the southern Ocean County area.
Joseph Kling of Waretown failed to properly extinguish a bonfire of wooden pallets, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette and Ocean Township Chief of Police Michal Rogalski .
Officials said that as part of their investigation into the wildfire, they plotted the origin of the fire and determined the cause of the fire was an improperly extinguished bonfire. Officials said further investigation revealed that Kling was responsible for setting wooden pallets on fire – and then leaving the area without the fire being fully extinguished.
According to officials, Kling was taken into custody at Ocean Township (Waretown) police headquarters and then transported to the Ocean County jail, where he is awaiting a detention hearing.
Like all defendants, Kling is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Progress Against Fire
New Jersey firefighters reported Thursday at 1 p.m. that the wildfire in Ocean County has been 50% contained after burning 15,100 acres.
About 8 structures remain under threat, down from 12 on Wednesday, according to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service. One commercial building has been destroyed and multiple outbuildings and vehicles have been damaged.
Evacuation orders that affected 5,000 people were lifted on Wednesday, when the fire service reported that about 11,500 acres had burned and the wildfire was 30% contained.
No injuries have been reported.
The Jones Road wildfire began Tuesday in the Pine Barrens area in Barnegat township and then moved north into Lacey.
Forest Fire Service firefighters and local fire, rescue, county and other state responders are battling the blaze.
The calls for rain, which could help efforts to fight the blaze.
The ratings and analytics firm Moody’s has been monitoring the wildfire in the Garden State. Firas Saleh, director of wildfire models, North America, at Moody’s, said it is one of the largest wildfires in the state’s recent history. “This event underscores that wildfire risk is not confined to western states alone. It highlights community vulnerability to such events and the importance of resilience.” Saleh commented.
According to the Moody’s executive, the Jones Road wildfire is a “stark reminder” of the growing frequency and intensity of wildfires due to factors such as prolonged drought conditions, higher temperatures, and low humidity.
Saleh noted that last year at this time, the fire service reported there were 310 wildfires that burned 315 acres across New Jersey. This year so far, 662 wildfires have burned 16,572 acres across the state.
Was this article valuable?
Here are more articles you may enjoy.
Tesla Slumps Below 50% Share of California’s Electric Car Market 
Class Action Accuses Toyota of Illegally Sharing Drivers’ Data With Progressive 
Trump’s Trade War Is Making US Farmers Anxious About Demand Risk 
USI Says Lockton, Former Team Leader Poached Workers, Harmed Client Relations 
