The 18-year-old New York parks employee Saturday was being mourned by his family as well as state officials. Dariel Vasquez, an aide with the New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Department, was helping to combat a wildfire in Orange County's Sterling Forest, near the New Jersey border, when a tree fell on him, killing him, reports. "My prayers go out to his family, friends and coworkers during this difficult time," Gov.
Kathy Hochul said in a statement cited by . "I commend his dedication to serving and protecting his fellow New Yorkers, and his bravery on the front lines." New Jersey's forest fire service chief added, "He's brave, that's for sure.
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Here's a young man that's out there doing some really hard work." On a GoFundMe campaign page, his family remembered the high school senior as "a young man full of promise, hope, and dedication" who was the captain of his school's baseball team and planning to start college in the new year. As of Sunday night, 3,000 acres had burned and the fire was 10% contained, and officials said it could take days to get the blaze under control.
New Jersey has seen 537 wildfires so far this season, which the fire service chief says about 500 more than in the same period last year. (More stories.).