A New York Parks employee died on Saturday afternoon while battling a wildfire in Orange County. The fires, one of several blazes raging in New Jersey and New York, have prompted air quality warnings in both states due to dry conditions.
The worker, identified as 18-year-old Dariel Vasquez, lost his life when a tree fell on him while he was fighting a fire along the New York-New Jersey border in Sterling Forest near Greenwood Lake. Vasquez was an aide with the state parks and recreation department.
New York State Police are investigating the incident.
New York governor Kathy Hochul expressed grief over the incident, saying, as quoted by Fox News, “I am deeply saddened by the passing of one of our New York State Parks employees while responding to a wildfire in Orange County yesterday. My prayers go out to his family, friends, and coworkers during this difficult time.”
“RIP, brother. Your shift is over—job well done,” the New York State forestry services posted online.
The largest fire, known as the Jennings Creek wildfire, has expanded to nearly four square miles near the border in Passaic County, New Jersey. Officials report it threatens over a dozen structures in Greenwood Lake, New York, and ten homes and buildings in New Jersey’s Long Pond Ironworks Historic District.
Health advisories were issued for parts of New York, including New York City, and northeastern New Jersey due to unhealthy air quality from the smoke. The advisories urge people to limit strenuous outdoor activity, especially young children, the elderly, and those with asthma or heart disease.
Firefighters in New Jersey are also battling a 175-acre fire in Passaic County that is threatening homes, along with several smaller fires in other parts of the state.
Meanwhile, in Massachusetts, dry conditions and strong winds fueled a wildfire that burned over 200 acres in Lynn Woods Reservation, a large park north of Boston. “This is a dry spell we have not seen during this time of year in many years,” the Lynn Fire Department stated, attributing the fire’s intensity to low humidity, wind, and dry leaves.
Firefighters and forest agencies across the Northeast are warning against outdoor burning as dry conditions are expected to continue.
