10 Largest Wildfires In New Jersey's History: See Where They Burned, When

OCEAN COUNTY, NJ — As the Jones Road wildfire continued to consume acres of forest in southern Ocean County on Wednesday, state authorities said it was likely to be the largest wildfire in New Jersey in 20 years.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the fire that started in Barnegat Tuesday but spread rapidly to Waretown and Lacey had burned 12,000 acres in the Greenwood Forest Wildlife Management area, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said. It was 35 percent contained, and the fire service said the containment area was anticipated to be 15,140 acres.

Wildfires have become more frequent in the last few years due to ongoing dry conditions and warmer weather, with 662 wildfires so far in 2025, New Jersey Forest Fire Service Chief Bill Donnelly said Wednesday.

The forest fire service classifies anything that exceeds 100 acres as a major wildfire. Most of the fires it tackles are quickly contained to less than 100 acres. While fires that exceed 10,000 acres are less common they pose far greater challenges because of their size.

A 2019 report on forest fire mitigation by the state Office of Emergency Management includes a long list of wildfires that have happened across the state from 1905 through 2016.

State officials referenced the Warren Grove wildfire that happened in May 2007 when an errant flare fired by an Air National Guard pilot during a practice session. That fire consumed 15,550 acres of forest in Stafford and Barnegat, prompted the evacuation of about 6,000 people and destroyed five homes, along with damaging 50 others.

That fire is one of the top 10 largest in New Jersey's history, according to the mitigation report.

It ranks sixth. Here are the top 10 largest fires in New Jersey's history, according to the mitigation report.

1. The largest single wildfire listed in the report consumed 76,000 acres in April 1963, and was one of a series of 37 wildfires that consumed 193,000 acres of forest over three days. Those fires killed seven people and destroyed 186 homes and 197 outbuildings, causing $8.5 million in property damage. The largest fire traveled 21 miles from New Lisbon to the Garden State Parkway, the report said.

2. The second-largest was 58,000 acres in the Bass River state forest in Burlington County in April 1905. Five Civilian Conservation Corps firefighters died fighting that fire, according to the report.

3 and 4. Also in 1905, there was a 20,000-acre wildfire in Moore's Meadows in Burlington County that threatened the town of Chatsworth, and fire in Manahawkin in May that burned 21,000 acres in 7 hours, 13 minutes.

5. In April 1995, 19,225 acres in Manchester, Lacey, and Ocean Township (Waretown) burned, with homes in the Wynnewood and Bamber Lake communities. Strong winds were a key factor in the amount of forest burned.

6. The May 2007 Warren Grove fire. Two New Jersey Forestry Service personnel were injured as about 600 firefighters from as far away as Sussex and Cumberland counties and seven aircraft helped battle the blaze.

7. In March 1977, there was a 15,000-acre fire that burned six homes and caused extensive damage in Burlington, Ocean, and Atlantic Counties. In July 1977, four Eagleswood Volunteer firefighters died fighting a 2,300-acre fire in Bass River State Forest.

8. While not a single fire, the report includes four fires in a five-week span in May and June of 1992 brought a series of fires that consumed more than 14,000 acres, the report said, including a pair of fires in Lacey that burned 4,832 in May and 5,284 in June. The May fire in Lacey forced the shutdown of the Oyster Creek Nuclear Power Plant. The fires included 2,900 acres burned in Woodland Township in Burlington County and 1,000 acres burned in Pine Beach in Ocean County.

9. In April 1999, fire burned near the Bass River again, with 11,975 acres consumed, threatening Bass River State Forest.

10. The mitigation report also mentions an April 1943 fire in Bass River that burned 11,225 acres but did not include details.

There have been other major wildfires in the last few years, but few have exceeded 10,000 acres. There have been other challenges, however, with an increase in the population and the number of structures around and in the Pine Barrens.

A 3,800-acre wildfire in Manchester in March 2023 highlighted these challenges as dozens of volunteer firefighters worked with the state Forest Fire Service to protect homes and businesses from what could have been a catastrophic fire.

Additional reporting:

• Roads Reopen, Evacuations End As Southern Ocean Wildfire Grows
• Wildfire Power Outage Keeps Businesses Closed In Southern Ocean
• Oyster Creek Owner Clarifies Plant Status Amid Wildfire In Lacey
• NJ Farm Evacuates Multiple Horses As Jones Road Wildfire Burns: Report
• Jones Road Wildfire Prompts State Of Emergency In South Jersey
• NJ Wildfire: Pictures, Videos Depict Damage As Fire Rages
• Wildfire Grows To 3,200 Acres In Barnegat: Officials