Brush fire spread 700 acres, shut down NJ highway, forced residents to evacuate

A brush fire burning through a state forest in Burlington County led state officials to shut down a swath of highway on Thursday and ask area residents to leave, officials said.

New Jersey State Police asked residents on the east side of Route 206, between Stokes and Atsion roads, to evacuate until the fire, ripping through the Wharton State Forest in Shamong Township, could be brought under control. State Police said the fire was "contained" about 7:30 p.m.

Officials also shut down that stretch of highway about 2 p.m. and it reopened around 6 p.m.

About 25 residents were evacuated, and were allowed to return around 7 p.m. No property damage was reported.

No injuries were reported.

The fire spread over 700 acres.

Carleton Montgomery, executive director of the Pinelands Preservation Alliance, was on the scene Thursday afternoon.

Montgomery said this time of year local forests are most vulnerable to fire.

"It's a fire-prone ecosystem. … 100 acres would be a medium size for what the Forest Fire Service here has to deal with," he said.

In recent years there have been fires that have consumed more than 9,000 acres, and historically even 100,000 acres, he said.

"As long as the fire is contained entirely within the forest that's fine," he said.

Given the weather conditions, Montgomery speculated that the fire probably was set by a person and by accident.

"It's almost certainly not a natural cause because there was no lightning," he said.

The forest, Montgomery said, "will bounce back and recover. You just worry if it were to get out of control, getting into the settled areas."

Fire officials used a helicopter and a plane to try to bring the blaze under control.