18-year-old park employee killed while battling wildfire in New York

An 18-year-old New York state employee was killed Saturday while fighting a wildfire in Sterling Forest in Orange County.

Dariel Vasquez, a New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Department volunteer, was helping contain the wildfire when he was killed, New York State Police said in a statement. The police are investigating the incident.

“I am deeply saddened by the death of one of our New York State Parks employees while responding to a wildfire in Orange County yesterday,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement Sunday. “My prayers go out to his family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time.”

Wildfires continue to rage in warm, dry conditions in the Northeast, where 11 million people remain under fire alarm as of Sunday afternoon. Cities under fire alarm include Boston and Hartford.

Multiple fires are burning in Orange County. County Executive Steve Neuhaus is urging residents living near the fires to create an evacuation plan.

“At this time, the incident command team has not indicated that evacuations are imminent, but we continue to monitor the situation carefully,” Neuhaus said in an update on Sunday.

The Sterling Forest fire in Orange County is also affecting Passaic County, New Jersey – where it is being called the Jennings Creek Wildfire, according to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service. The fire has spread to 2,500 acres and is 0% contained as of Sunday afternoon. The cause is currently being investigated.

“The Forest Fire Service remains on scene with fire engines and ground crews,” the NJ Forest Fire Service said on X. “A Forest Fire Service helicopter capable of dropping 350 gallons of water is on scene.”

Elsewhere in Passaic County, the 175-acre Cannonball 3 wildfire is 75% contained. The cause is also being investigated.

A man was arrested after he was accused of starting a fire in Jackson Township, New Jersey, the Forest Fire Department said in a news release. The man allegedly fired ammunition from a shotgun, starting the fire behind a berm near a gun club. The man was charged with arson and violating firearms regulations.

In Massachusetts, a wildfire is burning in the Lynn Woods Reservation, a forest park in Essex County. The park is closed to the public until further notice, the city of Lynn said in a statement on X.

Drone video from the park shows smoke rising from a raging fire.

“Falling trees, air quality and the risk of further fires continue to pose significant risks to the public,” the city said.

On Sunday, dry vegetation, wind gusts of 40 km/h and relative humidity of around 40% increase the risk of rapid spread of new or existing fires. An approaching cold front may bring rain and higher humidity later Sunday evening.

A slow-moving front will move further east Sunday afternoon, bringing much-needed moisture to the eastern third of the country, which includes the Northeast.

Showers will move into the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic later Sunday evening and overnight. Rainfall totals will be relatively light, between 0.5 and 1 inch.

The forecast rain is likely to break Philadelphia’s record streak of consecutive dry days. The current duration is 42 days, breaking the previous record of 29 set in 1874.