Evacuations Lifted, 'Shotgun' Wildfire At 175 Acres In Ocean County

JACKSON, NJ — A wildfire burning in Jackson Township had consumed 175 acres of forest off South Stump Tavern Road and was 20 percent contained Wednesday night, officials with the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said.

The service hoped to have the fire, which it is calling the Shotgun Wildfire, completely contained by Thursday morning, said Deale Carey, the section forest firewarden and incident commander for the forest fire service.

The "Shotgun" name comes from the fire's proximity to the Central Jersey Rifle and Pistol Club, on the west side of South Stump Tavern Road.

People who had been evacuated from their homes in the early stages of fighting the fire were allowed to return Wednesday night, as the evacuation order was lifted at 9 p.m., Carey said at a news conference at Cassville Fire Company.

There were 15 homes evacuated along South Stump Tavern. The fire was reported at 12:17 p.m., Carey said, and they called for the evacuations immediately because of the direction of the fire and the unpredictability of how they burn.

Carey said six homes on the west side of the road were at the greatest risk from the fire but fire crews were able to protect them and prevent damage by using bulldozers to clear a ring around the homes, then using backfires to create burn rings where the fuel had been consumed, preventing the fire from reaching the homes.

Firefighters had been able to keep the fire from crossing South Stump Tavern Road, Carey said.

The Forest Fire Service has fire engines, bulldozers and ground crews working to fight the fire and a Forest Fire Service helicopter is on scene for observation, officials said.

Local fire companies and EMS crews have been providing support to the fire crews.