A devastating wildfire broke out in the Pine Barrens, resulting in a declaration of a state of emergency. Over 400 acres were burned.
At a Sunday press conference, Rudy Sunderman, the Suffolk County of Fire, Rescue and Emergency Services commissioner said, “The Westhampton wildfire has been 100 percent knocked down and 22 percent contained. Knockdown refers to all visible fires. You don't see any visible fires as we speak. Containment refers to the creation of a firebreak around the perimeter.”
Officials said that the 35 mph winds drove the fire and downed trees fed the fire resulting in large clouds of smoke engulfing the area.
The fire began with brush fires in Center Moriches, East Moriches, and Eastport. Then, a major fire broke out in the Westhampton Pine Barrens.
Sunderman said, “We’ll be working today until dusk and be back at it tomorrow until the job is completed.”
The Suffolk County Arson Squad is investigating the cause of the fires. No further details were provided regarding suspicions of arson.
Bill Biondi, Commissioner of Mastic Beach Fire Department told The South Shore Press that “over 90 fire department and 10 EMS agencies were on scene with over 600 fire personnel and EMS responding to the fire.”
Aid in the firefight also came from personnel at the Francis S. Gabreski Air National Guard Base in Westhampton.
Three Black Hawk helicopters with 660-gallon water scoopers brought water to the site from Wildwood Lake. State Police drones and a C130 plane were used to monitor and report on the fire from the air.
Sunderman said, “We had two injuries, both fire personnel were treated and released from the area hospitals and have been sent home in stable condition.”
One fireman had second-degree burns to his face and was flown by helicopter to the Stony Brook Hospital. The other fireman sustained a head injury resulting in a concussion.
There are no private residences in the area where the fire raged, but two commercial buildings on the west side of County Road 31 were damaged.
“One was completely destroyed and one seriously damaged,” said Westhampton Beach Second Assistant Chief Lewis Scott.
Biondi said “The only things still burning to any degree now are big smoldering pine trees that died and fell as a result of the invasive pine beetle. That is all getting cleaned up now. Hopefully, the winds won't fan anything back.”
“The decimation of the southern pine beetle has created a huge fuel load on the floor of the Pine Barrens. Add those things together, and it's not a great recipe when it comes to fires,” said Ryan Murphy, Southampton Town’s public safety and emergency management administrator.
As much as the pine beetle has decimated trees, it is also part of the ongoing process of trees dying and new growth coming up in the forest.
DEC Commissioner Amanda Lefton said, “The Southern pine beetle, which has destroyed large tracts of pines across Long Island, played a role in the spread of the fire, but added that fire is a necessary precursor to the forest being able to rejuvenate itself.”