So that smoke coming from Central Park? It's an actual brush fire! According to Notify NYC, "FD is on scene of a brush fire in Central Park. 5th Ave btwn 107th St and 103rd St is closed. Expect traffic delays." more ›

That large brush fire burning near MetLife Stadium in the Meadowlands yesterday consumed over one hundred acres, with flames leaping as high as 20 feet and spewing smoke visible as far as Brooklyn and Queens. Officials shut down part of the New Jersey turnpike for almost an hour as firefighters battled the blaze, which also dumped considerable ash on Brooklyn. In DUMBO, black ash was seen falling across the neighborhood, and one observer tells us, "It was flying down near the Watchtower. It looked like a black twig, and when I stepped on it, it disintegrated!" more ›

We've been getting worried emails from Brooklyn readers who are wondering if that giant black plume of smoke is coming from a catastrophic fire in Manhattan. Turns out that a major brush fire is raging in New Jersey just off the turnpike near MetLife Stadium. The three-alarm fire began around 1:15 p.m. according to officials and has sent smoke billowing high above the Manhattan skyline, making it visible all the way in Brooklyn and Queens. more ›

After two straight days of brush fires breaking out on Staten Island, the Fire Department is looking into whether the fires were set on purpose. on Friday, there were several fires in Oakwood Beach and yesterday, there were fires in Ocean Breeze, New Corp Beach, Midland Beach and South Beach, where there was a four-alarm fire. No civilians were injured (one firefighter was injured) and no homes were damaged. Deputy Chief Roger Sakowich said of yesterday's blazes, "If they were closer together we would have said there was a good chance it could have jumped. This area, it was a very large area, and it leads us to believe it was possibly suspicious." more ›

With dry, windy conditions, large brush fires blazed for hours on Staten Island. Hundreds of firefighters responded to the blazes—some units need to be called from Brooklyn. At least three fires were reported (one climbed to six alarms, another climbed to five); the Staten Island Advance reports that at one fire in Great Kills Park, "A unit was trapped between two patches of fire, but escaped without harm, according to transmissions and a source at the scene." more ›

A brush fire started in Spring Creek Park this afternoon around 161 Avenue and 83rd Street, sweeping through six areas of brush in the salt marsh. The fire first started around 3:45 this afternoon, flared up around 4 and was finally put out just after 5 p.m. The Spring Creek Park Preserve takes up 75 acres on the Queens/Brooklyn border and is "the largest undeveloped salt marsh in northern Jamaica Bay." Reader Valerio Bruscianelli sent us this photo, taken from South Street Seaport, and from this vantage point it looks like Gothamist HQ is the one up in flames! more ›

The sign says it all. The weather doesn't get much better than a sunny and 70 degree April day. Or does it? The air is bone dry and the wind is going to pick up later, leading the weather service to issue a Red Flag Warning, which means "critical fire weather conditions are occurring or imminent". Look out for brush fires, Staten Island! more ›

Yesterday afternoon, a brush fire swept across the Oakwood Beach section of Staten Island and became a 6-alarm blaze that spread to houses. The Staten Island Advance reports, "Giant billows of smoke...could be seen from as far away as Manhattan and New Jersey. About 250 firefighters were deployed to battle the blaze." The fire lasted for four hours. more ›

Police arrested a man for allegedly starting a fire that disrupted traffic along the Henry Hudson Parkway yesterday. The blaze required 60 firefighters to extinguish. While no one was injured, but the median between the north- and south-bound parkways were blocked for an hour as 12 FDNY units were required to put out the urban wildfire. more ›