BRICK, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey’s governor declared a drought warning.
Black Hawk helicopters scooped water from a lake to dump on a burning forest in New York state. A park in Manhattan caught fire. And authorities in two states revealed criminal charges Wednesday against people accused of setting some of the wildfires that have plagued the northeast U.
S. in recent weeks. The actions came as conditions in some northeast states are the driest they’ve been in nearly 120 years as numerous wildfires continue to burn in places that haven’t seen significant rain since August.
Meanwhile, dry conditions from coast to coast were contributing to the spread of wildfires, particularly in Southern California. The drought declaration by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy asked people to take voluntary conservation steps, like shorter showers, turning the faucet off while brushing teeth, and waiting until the dishwasher is full to run it.
But it stopped short of mandatory water usage restrictions, which would be included in the event of a drought emergency, the highest alert the government can impose. New Jersey is not yet at the point where communities are in danger of running out of water for drinking or fighting fires. And the state wants to prevent things from reaching that point.
“Please take this seriously,” Murphy said. “We have a very dry winter ahead of us.” The dry weather has brought a spate of brush and woodland fires to a part of the country that rarely has to deal with.
