Wildfires continued to rage across New Jersey on Sunday, as a record-long dry spell is poised to come to an end.

The largest was West Milford’s Jennings Creek wildfire, which straddles the New York-New Jersey border. The fire had so far consumed 2,500 acres and threatens 25 structures, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said late Sunday morning. The blaze was at 0% containment as of Sunday morning, the West Milford Fire Marshal’s Office said.

The fire started on Saturday, officials said, and the cause remained unknown and under investigation.

Two residences and eight buildings in the Long Pond Ironworks Historic District were threatened by the fire, officials said. An additional 14 buildings in New York were in danger. There were currently no evacuations in place.

An 18-year-old firefighter died battling the blaze in Sterling Forest. Dariel Vasquez, a parks employee in New York, was killed Saturday in the New York section of the park, New York State Police said. His death remained under investigation.

The fire was just one of many reported in the past several days throughout the state, spurred by a lengthy drought that has produced perilous fire conditions.

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Elsewhere, the Cannonball 3 Wildfire in Pompton Lakes was at 175 acres Sunday morning, the same size it was Saturday night. The fire remained 75% contained, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said on X, formerly Twitter.

While there have been no evacuations, 55 structures remained threatened. Cannonball Road remained closed at DuPont Place, but all lanes of Route 287 had reopened.

The cause of that fire remained under investigation. An update will be provided around 6 p.m. Sunday night, officials said.

An air quality alert was in effect in Bergen, Passaic, Hudson, Essex, Union counties until 9 p.m. on Sunday.

Most of New Jersey has not seen meaningful rain since late August, and no rain at all since September. Most of New Jersey is in a severe drought, with three counties in the Pinelands region in an “extreme drought,” a more serious and rare designation.

Up to half an inch of rain is expected in some parts of New Jersey on Sunday evening, which though helpful will not be enough to end the drought, forecasters said. But wind conditions expected to accompany the rain could make battling the forest fires even more complicated.

New Jersey is currently under a Stage 3 fire ban, which prohibits any open fires from being lit.

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