A volunteer firefighter on Long Island has been accused of intentionally sparking a brush fire that burned through a wooded area in Medford.
Jonathan Quiles, 20, was arrested Tuesday night on charges of arson and reckless endangerment in connection with the blaze in Suffolk County, Pix 11 News reported. Police said he started the fire earlier in the day, around 3:30 p.m., in a wooded area along Mount Vernon Avenue, but did not say what led them to believe Quiles was responsible.
The flames tore through parts of Twelve Pines Park and firefighters were still battling hotspots on Wednesday.
The Medford Fire Department said they “perform arson background checks before admitting members,” which turned up nothing to suggest Quiles had “any inclination of intentionally setting fires.”
Quiles has been suspended and will be fired if convicted, according to a press release from the fire department.
“This incident is being actively investigated by the [Suffolk County Police Department] Arson Squad,” the press release concluded. “The Medford Fire District and the Medford Fire Department have no further comments on this incident.”
A Red Flag Warning has been in place for Long Island since Tuesday morning. Such an alert is issued during critical fire weather conditions — including low humidity, strong winds, and dry vegetation — that contributes to the high risk of wildfires starting and spreading quickly.
Amid dry conditions for much of the tri-state area, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul issued an outdoor burn ban on Tuesday. She also visited the site of the Jennings Creek wildfire, which broke out Saturday in West Milford, N.J. and has since crossed the state border into Orange County, N.Y.
Firefighters were still working to battle back that blaze on Wednesday, New York State Police said in a Facebook post.
State Police and Army National Guard helicopters on Tuesday dumped more than 175 buckets of water on the fire, one of several blazes burning in New Jersey, where residents have seen little rain in recent weeks.
On Wednesday, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy announced he was elevating New Jersey’s drought watch to a warning, cautioning that if the situation gets worse, homes and businesses could face mandatory water restrictions.
