Teenage park ranger dies as wildfires burn in New York State

An 18-year-old park ranger has died in the US state of New York while battling a wildfire in Sterling Forest – one of several blazes that erupted in the region this week.

The teenager was identified by state police as Dariel Vasquez. Officials said Mr Vasquez, who worked for the state’s parks and recreation department, was helping to fight the fire when he was killed.

As of Sunday, several brush fires were burning across the region of New England on the US east coast, fuelled by warm, dry weather.

Wildfires have also erupted on the other side of the country, in southern California, where at least 130 structures have been burned.

On Sunday, New York Governor Kathy Hochul said she was “deeply saddened” by Mr Vasquez’s death.

“My prayers go out to his family, friends and coworkers during this difficult time,” she said.

Scientists say climate change is making the weather conditions needed for wildfires to spread more likely.

Fires on the east coast led to air quality warnings in the neighbouring states of New York and New Jersey.

This region has a less defined wildfire season than western parts of the US. Fires here are likely to have been exacerbated by unseasonal warm and dry conditions, said BBC weather forecaster Helen Rossington.

These conditions have led to extreme drought and fire warnings in New Jersey. The region is expected to receive some rainfall on Monday and Tuesday before turning drier and cooler again by Wednesday.

One blaze – the Whitehouse Fire – is burning in Ulster and Sullivan counties, west of Hartford, Connecticut, and is up to 400 acres in size, Hochul has said.

Two others are burning in Sterling Forest State Park – about 45 miles (72 km) north of New York City – including the Jennings Creek Wildfire, which killed Mr Vasquez, the park ranger. As of Sunday evening, the blaze was only 10% contained and had burned more than 3,000 acres (12 sq km).

In recent days, a brush fire has erupted in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, spreading the smell of smoke across New York City. Wildfires rarely occur within city limits.

Officials said it took about three hours and more than 100 first responders to put out the blaze.

In Orange County, where the Sterling Forest State Park fires are burning, County Executive Steve Neuhaus urged nearby residents to have an evacuation plan in place.

“At this time, the Incident Command team has not indicated that evacuations are imminent, but we continue to monitor the situation carefully,” he said in a Sunday update.

Officials in New Jersey have warned residents against lighting open fires and have asked them to “take every precaution possible” for fire prevention.

On Saturday, a 37-year-old man was arrested in New Jersey’s Jackson Township for allegedly sparking a blaze earlier in the week by firing his shotgun.

Richard Shashaty faces multiple charges including arson, according to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service.

In southern California, crews have managed to contain 36% of the Mountain Fire in Ventura County, which has burned more than 20,000 acres as of Monday morning.

That fire destroyed 132 structures, mostly homes, in less than two days, officials said on Thursday. Its cause remains under investigation.

California officials said the fires spread due to the Santa Ana winds, which are dry, warm and gusty winds that blow from the interior toward the coast during the autumn months.

Although fires in California are possible all year round, November is past peak season, especially for the south of the state – according to the Western Fire Chiefs Association (WFCA), a branch of the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC).