New Jersey County Sees Second Major Brushfire in 12 Months

Dozens of people were evacuated from their homes for several hours Saturday afternoon when a large brush fire broke out in southern Ocean County.

The New Jersey Forest Fire Service and firefighters from several nearby communities battled the blaze, which broke out around 2 p.m. near Route 72 in Barnegat. It consumed about 75 acres before it was declared fully under control around 6 p.m., officials said.

No injuries were reported, but residents from about 50 homes and a nearby campground were evacuated as a precaution. The cause of the fire remained under investigation Saturday night.

The blaze was near the site of another wildfire that burned 17,000 acres last May. That blaze was touched off by an F-16 on a training mission that dropped a flare from too low an altitude into tinder-dry brush at the Warren Grove Gunnery Range.