New York firefighters are responding to large-scale brush wildfires in Long Island’s Pine Barrens, about 80 miles east of Manhattan as videos across social media showed thick plums of gray smoke above roads and highways.
The flames, which started around 1 p.m. on Saturday, prompted evacuations of a military base and forced officials to close eastbound parts of the Sunrise Highway, a road leading to the Hamptons, known for its affluent seaside. Officials believe separate fires ignited along a seven-mile stretch of the highway surrounding Eastport and Westhampton.
Three of the four fires were fully contained while a fire in Westhampton was 50 percent contained by late Saturday night.
Fires partially burned two commercial buildings, and one firefighter was flown to a hospital to be treated for burns to his face, according to officials.
The Pine Barrens is a wooded, protected area spanning 105,000 acres in Suffolk County. The state’s National Guard dropped water on the blazes in the early afternoon, according to county executive Edward Romaine.
It remains unclear what sparked the blazes.
Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul declared a state disaster emergency.
“This is still out of control at this moment,” she told Long Island news outlet News 12.
She said more evacuations could be ordered, as homes, a chemical factory and an Amazon warehouse remained at risk.a
The governor deployed personnel from the Offices of Emergency Management, Fire Prevention and Control, Department of Transportation, Department of Environmental Conservation, State Parks and the New York State Police.
“Public safety is my top priority, and I’m committed to doing everything possible to keep Long Islanders safe,” she said in a statement.
The town of Southhampton separately declared a state of emergency from 3 p.m. through the next 30 days unless any changes are made to the proclamation.
Dry weather and high winds, along with damage to woodland areas caused by a southern pine beetle infestation, are exacerbating the conditions for dangerous wildfires, the town said in a statement. The National Weather Service warned about an elevated fire risk in the area on Saturday morning, with 30 percent humidity and northwest winds gusting 30 to 35 mph.
A spokesperson for the Westhampton Beach Volunteer Fire Department, one of the dozens of authorities responding, told The Independent the fire is approximately 90 percent contained and expects it to be extinguished by late Saturday night.
Winds continue to pose a threat to firefighting efforts, the spokesperson said. Smoke conditions are improving.
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