Over 800 acres burning in uncontrolled wildfires throughout the state this week

EVESHAM TOWNSHIP, N.J. - Several wildfires have erupted in South Jersey, forcing more homes to evacuate as fire crews battle both blazes.

Bethany Run Wildfire

The "Bethany Run Wildfire" has already torched 360 acres with 75 percent containment on the border of Burlington and Camden counties in Evesham and Voorhees townships.

Fire crews say at least 12 homes were evacuated with 104 total structures threatened in the area. The evacuation order was lifted by 4 p.m.

The forest service says one of the first things they did was work on backfiring, or removing fuel between the main fire and the homes. They reported forward progress by Thursday afternoon.

Some residents spent the morning spraying their homes with water and clearing leaves from their yards in an effort to preserve their homes.

Longtime Evesham homeowners say they only dealt with this a few times, but this past year alone, this is their third fire. The fire service says they have been working every day for more than a month with a record 400 fires statewide in October.

In a Thursday evening press conference, updating the fire conditions, Chief of NJ Forest Fire Service, Bill Donnelly, explained, "Over 8,000 acres burned here with over 1,200 wildfires. This year has been crazy dry, as everyone knows. October has been the busiest month on record for the fire service."

Pheasant Run Wildfire

In the meantime, another new wildfire is burning, this time in Gloucester County.

Officials say the "Pheasant Run Wildfire" is burning in the Glassboro Wildfire Management Area, near Carpenter Avenue.

The Forest Fire service alerted the public about the fire around 5 p.m. Thursday. By the evening, they stated it had burned about 133 acres and was 35 percent contained. Carpenter Avenue was closed as crews worked to extinguish the blaze.

As of 10 a.m. Friday morning, officials say the fire was 50 percent contained. No structures were threatened and no road closures were in effect. 

The "major" wildfire comes just a day after the "Shotgun Wildfire" erupted in the Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area near Stump Tavern Road in Jackson Township.

Shotgun Wildfire

As of Friday morning, the Forest Fire Service says the fire was 80 percent contained, and it has impacted at least 350 acres. No structures were threatened and Stump Tavern Road remained closed.

Thursday, homes on both sides of Stump Tavern Road were evacuated, and more than two dozen buildings were said to be threatened by the flames.

For residents watching their community fill with flames and smoke, they’re thankful for the ones keeping them safe.

"The police, the firefighters, the forest service – they’ve been out in the woods, they’ve been out here on the streets. So, it’s actually pretty rewarding to see tax dollars at work in a rewarding way," Evesham resident, Ben Spalter said.

The National Weather Service issued a Red Flag Warning for the entire Delaware and Lehigh valleys from 8 a.m. Friday until 6 p.m. Friday.

Much of South Jersey is considered to be in some part of a drought, according to the Drought Monitor released by state officials, with the Pine Barrens in an extreme drought. According to Dr. David Robinson, N.J. State Climatologist at Rutgers University, the Garden State is about 10 inches behind in rainfall and conditions continue to worsen.

Most of Ocean County, parts of Burlington County and most of Atlantic County are particularly dry, with stream fall and groundwater below normal.

Dr. Robinson said, "It’s bad everywhere, but it’s been happening longer and more intensely in that area we’ve designated – we’ve recommended go to D3," in reference to New Jersey’s drought condition and ranking.

The cause of all three fires remains under investigation.