Jez Renner
A number of Orange County residents woke up to a smoky horizon on Monday, November 11.The sky, covered in a thick layer of orange haze, was reminiscent of the Canadian wildfires, which greatly affected the east coast in June 2023. This time, the origin of the fire is much closer: the New York-New Jersey border. According to the New York Times, the fires have burned through more than 6,300 acres of land since November 8, requiring over 1,300 personnel from more than 400 fire departments to contain.
Multiple firefighters have been injured or hospitalized for smoke inhalation. Rockland resident Dariel Vasquez, a park worker, was killed by a falling tree while fighting the fire in Passaic County. He was only 18.
When asked about the wildfires, Orangetown Fire Captain David Majewski explained the challenges they present. “The issue with wildfires is that depending on the size, the strategy can differ drastically. If it’s just your backyard on fire, we can show up and put it out easier than if a whole park or section of land or more is on fire. If we get a big fire, the strategy tends to change to a more defensive operation and we focus on stopping the spread as much as possible before we start trying to put the fire out.” Majewski said m that the lack of rain played a part, making for dry conditions, with strong winds helping the fire to spread even more. The captain also warned of the dangers wildfires bring. The dangers include: poor air quality, destruction of property, loss of life, and local animal populations suffering from the fire.
The fire, which was one of the largest fires in New York in the past two decades, was finally 100% contained after two weeks, thanks to the concerted efforts of fire fighters, who put their lives on the line to protect those around them.