New Yorkers couldn’t have imagined wildfires threatening the concrete jungle, but the unthinkable has occurred recently.
There was an apocalyptic scene in a small clearing in the northwest section of Brooklyn’s Prospect Park. The charred remains of a microwave, a lawn chair, and a singed Bible were on the forest floor. Amid burned pinecones was a pile of melted clothing. A fire truck slowly circled the park as a squirrel scampered over the scorched earth and scattered autumn leaves. This terrible scene was the aftermath of an inferno that swept through a homeless encampment in the park’s woods.
A lifelong Brooklyn resident, media arts teacher Jake Catalanotto, was unnerved by what he observed as he combed the fire site nearly a week after the blaze. The 26-year-old described what he saw to Al Jazeera while surveying the burned area, roughly the size of two football fields.
“There are burned-out husks of electronics and cans and spray cans, mattresses. A little one of those things that you put over a fire to cook over it. Pots and pans,” he said.
The Driest Month on Record
According to New York City officials, October was the driest month on record. Between October 29 and November 12, there were a record-breaking 229 brush fires in the city’s five boroughs. Caused by one of the most prolonged droughts in the area’s history, the arid conditions have transformed the city’s expansive parks into a tinder box. The forested areas of New York state are just as dry and in danger of wildfires. The dangerous conditions have the communities, politicians, and fire crews on high alert.
Officials have mandated a statewide burn ban in response to the wildfires until November 30.
“Now is not the right time to be burning outdoors, and I urge everyone to heed our warnings as we continue to take the necessary precautions to keep all New Yorkers safe,” Governor Kathy Hochul said.
Due to the arid conditions, New York City has banned outdoor grilling.
Mayor Eric Adams told reporters at the location of the brush fire last Friday that he’s praying for rain.
“We really need rain with all of these leaves, and dry ground, and trees,” he said.
The Prospect Park Blaze in Brooklyn
Officials are still probing the cause of the fire in Prospect Blaze but remain tight-lipped. Luckily, no one was injured in the inferno.
The fire ripped through two acres of the park’s Nethermead meadow area. In response, more than 100 New York City firefighters combatted the fire at the park. Officials on-scene said the steep terrain and windy conditions hindered the firefighters’ efforts.
Images of the city park fire went viral soon after it started. In the photos, the tree line was silhouetted against the orange glow of the fire’s flames, with clouds of smoke billowing above the treeline. The stench of smoke could be smelled miles away.
“That initial image that was shared when the fire was first reported was horrifying,” said Morgan Monaco, the president of the Prospect Park Alliance, who blamed the drought on climate change.
Park officials say the multiple burned trees and scorched plant material covering the forest floor must be removed in the upcoming weeks and months. The barren area is now in danger of potential flooding and soil erosion. Park workers will monitor the area to prevent any activity that could start a fire.
Though there are reports of the vagrants who lived in the homeless encampment possibly setting the fire, Monaco declined to comment.
Several New Yorkers have attached notes to a fence by the ridge where the fire burned. The notes praise the firefighters who fought the inferno and express solidarity with the park.
“Prospect Park we will fight for better climate policy so generations ahead can know your beauty!” says one note.
