2019 NJ wildfire season: civil charges filed for Spring Hill Fire

A little over a year ago, the Spring Hill fire burned 11,638 acres in the New Jersey Pine Barrens (aka as the Pinelands), for more information on this fire see my two articles (with links) from April 1, 2019 here and here, and my April 8, 2019 articles with some aerial photos of the fire. I am especially fond of the section of the Pine Barrens near where the Spring Hill fire burned, known as Penn State Forest. I have traversed a portion on sand roads in my old all-wheel drive Subaru and when my knees were better, I walked along another sand road. If memory serves, deeper in Penn State Forest are some small pines that I call Pygmy Pines. They grow no higher than about 3 feet and for reasons that are hard to explain, I am drawn to the Pygmy Pines are special to me. I have seen Pygmy Pines elsewhere in the Pine Barrens but have never seen the Pygmy Pines in Penn State Forest. I do not know the area well enough to know what has and has not come back in the year since since the Spring Hill Fire burned. Nor do I know if the Pygmy Pine Plains in Penn State Forest burned. I do know and have seen with my own that the pines in the Pine Barren can come back after a fire, see my April 2019 article for more information.

I found out late last week, that civil charges have been filed against five individuals with actions that lead to the Spring Hill fire (see this April 16th press release from the NJ DEP for more information):

The filing of civil charges comes one year after the fire burned 11,638 acres of land in Bass River and Penn State forests. A complaint signed Friday, March 20, charges five individuals with setting a fire without written permission, and failure to extinguish the fire and notify authorities. The court filing seeks approximately $50,000 in restitution. 

“The Forest Fire Service’s pursuit of those responsible for this devastating wildfire was necessary because they recklessly put lives and property at risk,” Commissioner McCabe said. “The Spring Hill fire burned for a month, closed roads and required extensive resources to keep the public safe. Thankfully, there were no injuries or personal property damage during the fire, but thousands of acres of the public’s natural resources were needlessly destroyed. 

The press release goes on to explain that the Pinelands ecosystem is especially vulnerable to fire:

The Pinelands ecosystem, which covers a large swath of southern New Jersey – including the area of the Spring Hill wildfire -- is especially vulnerable to wildfires because its predominant tree and shrub species are particularly flammable. In addition, this region tends to dry out quickly after rainfall because of its porous and sandy soils. 

That was the case with the Spring Hill wildfire on March 30, 2019, which resulted when embers from an illegal bonfire on private property escaped and set a nearby forest ablaze. Weather conditions fueled the spread. 

Please pay attention to any regulations involving camp or bon fires. Please do fully extinguish any fires with water where it is cool to the touch before leaving the area.