A New Jersey wildfire has blazed over half of all acres burned in an average year

Firefighters in New Jersey were struggling on Wednesday to contain a fast-growing wildfire that has already blazed through over half of all acres burned in an average year in the state, with officials describing “200-foot flames.”

The so-called Jimmy’s Waterhole forest fire, which is burning in the state’s massive Pine Barrens reserve in Manchester Township, had grown to more than 3,800 acres in size by Wednesday afternoon from just 500 acres on Tuesday night.

The dry conditions and strong winds that have whipped up the size of the fire are due to reach other parts of the U.S. as well, the National Weather Service warned on Wednesday, issuing so-called “red flag warnings” for 20 states spanning the nation and cautioning fire risk was increased.

The Jimmy’s Waterhole fire was 75 per cent contained as of late Wednesday, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said, after a harrowing night that forced the evacuation of around 170 homes the previous evening.

No one was injured and no homes were damaged, and all evacuations orders were lifted by Wednesday night.

New Jersey typically sees about 1,500 wildfires in an average year that burn about 7,000 acres of forest, according to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service. April is the peak month for forest fires in New Jersey, officials said Wednesday.

John Cecil, an assistant commissioner for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, described 200-foot-high walls of flames and “raining fire embers” faced by firefighters overnight.

“I don’t mean to be dramatic, but this was a severe situation,” he told reporters at a press conference.

About 75 firefighters, two helicopters, bulldozers and 15 fire engines were being used to battle the flames.

A cause of the fire wasn’t given, but authorities said they’re investigating.

Forest fires are a common occurrence in the Pine Barrens, a 1.1 million-acre state and federally protected reserve about halfway between Philadelphia to the west and the Atlantic coast to the east. Forest land accounts for about 40 per cent of New Jersey, despite its status as the nation’s most densely populated state.

Fire is an essential element of the Pine Barrens ecosystem; many of the pine trees there rely on heat from fires to release seeds from their cones, providing for the growth of new trees.

— with files from the Associated Press