Police Arrest 19-Year-Old Over Massive New Jersey Fire, Reveal Cause Of Blaze

A 19-year-old man was arrested on arson charges for the massive fire that burned thousands of acres in New Jersey earlier this week, law enforcement announced Thursday.

The Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office charged Joseph Kling on Wednesday with aggravated arson with the purpose of destroying the forest and arson over the blaze that has burned around 15,000 acres in Ocean County. The fire prompted thousands of evacuations and led to a state of emergency being declared.

Kling was determined by law enforcement to be the “individual responsible for setting wooden pallets on fire – and then leaving the area without the fire being fully extinguished,” Ocean County prosecutors said. Kling, from Watertown, is currently behind bars at the Ocean County Jail. The county has posted no information about when Kling will appear in court. 

Investigators determined that the fire was incendiary, likely from an improperly extinguished bonfire, and used GPS to determine its origin. 

The fire prompted around 5,000 people to evacuate from the area, though the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said Thursday that the evacuation orders for Lacey and Ocean Townships had been lifted. The forest service also announced that the blaze had been 50% contained.

On Wednesday, Lacey Township Mayor Peter Curatolo said that the fire may “very well end up being the largest wildfire in New Jersey in 20 years.”

There have been no reported deaths or loss of homes from the fire, though at least one commercial building was destroyed alongside multiple vehicles and outbuildings.

The investigation involved Ocean County’s Major Crime Unit-Arson Squad, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service, the Ocean County Fire Marshal’s Office, and the New Jersey State Fire Marshal’s Office.

“Thanks to the incredible, heroic work of the good men and women of our New Jersey Forest Fire Service, folks’ homes and lives have been saved, and we’ve truly averted a major disaster,” New Jersey Forest Fire Service Commissioner Shawn LaTourette said Wednesday. “This wildfire is not under full and complete control, we still have a lot of work to do to achieve complete containment of the wildfire. But there were 1,300 homes that were threatened during the course of fighting this fire.”

A 19-year-old man was arrested on arson charges for the massive fire that burned thousands of acres in New Jersey earlier this week, law enforcement announced Thursday.

The Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office charged Joseph Kling on Wednesday with aggravated arson with the purpose of destroying the forest and arson over the blaze that has burned around 15,000 acres in Ocean County. The fire prompted thousands of evacuations and led to a state of emergency being declared.

Kling was determined by law enforcement to be the “individual responsible for setting wooden pallets on fire – and then leaving the area without the fire being fully extinguished,” Ocean County prosecutors said. Kling, from Watertown, is currently behind bars at the Ocean County Jail. The county has posted no information about when Kling will appear in court. 

Investigators determined that the fire was incendiary, likely from an improperly extinguished bonfire, and used GPS to determine its origin. 

The fire prompted around 5,000 people to evacuate from the area, though the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said Thursday that the evacuation orders for Lacey and Ocean Townships had been lifted. The forest service also announced that the blaze had been 50% contained.

On Wednesday, Lacey Township Mayor Peter Curatolo said that the fire may “very well end up being the largest wildfire in New Jersey in 20 years.”

There have been no reported deaths or loss of homes from the fire, though at least one commercial building was destroyed alongside multiple vehicles and outbuildings.

The investigation involved Ocean County’s Major Crime Unit-Arson Squad, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service, the Ocean County Fire Marshal’s Office, and the New Jersey State Fire Marshal’s Office.

“Thanks to the incredible, heroic work of the good men and women of our New Jersey Forest Fire Service, folks’ homes and lives have been saved, and we’ve truly averted a major disaster,” New Jersey Forest Fire Service Commissioner Shawn LaTourette said Wednesday. “This wildfire is not under full and complete control, we still have a lot of work to do to achieve complete containment of the wildfire. But there were 1,300 homes that were threatened during the course of fighting this fire.”