Wildfires continue to burn around the Tri-State as alert warnings remain and drought conditions persist. Fires lead to smoky skies and reduced air quality.

Nearly half a dozen forest fires are burning in New Jersey and red flag warnings cover the tri-state area, from the Garden State to New York City to Fairfield County, Connecticut, on Saturday, two days after the US Drought Monitor published news of more and more serious. The tri-state area is languishing in a prolonged and increasingly extreme drought.

Worsening smoke conditions triggered an air quality health advisory for New York City, as well as Rockland and Westchester counties. By Saturday evening, air quality had reached “very unhealthy” levels. Check your air quality here.

Anyone with heart or lung disease, the elderly and young children are advised to avoid exposure to outdoors. Everyone is encouraged to limit outdoor activities or keep them short.

The city’s advisory is expected to last until Sunday.

Storm Team 4’s Raphael Miranda takes a look at your weekend forecast and determines when these dry, smoky conditions might ease.

The firefighters were able to take control a two-acre brush fire in Prospect Park in Brooklyn Friday evening it threatened to spread to a very dense area of ​​the park, but fortunately a park visitor spotted the flames and called the FDNY.

The FDNY said its crews had the fire under control around 9:40 p.m., just three hours after the first 911 call was received. A firefighter reported a minor injury and was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment.

“The fire is under control and there are hot spots,” FDNY Commissioner Robert S. Tucker said at a news conference. press conference.

It’s unclear what exactly sparked Friday night’s fire, which broke out near Flatbush Avenue in the popular Brooklyn park.

In the wake of the park fire, Mayor Eric Adams announced a ban on all grilling in city parks as the city remains in the grip of drought.

“Effective immediately, we are banning grilling in our parks, and we need all New Yorkers to take common-sense steps to prevent wildfires,” Adams said Saturday.

Where are the fires currently burning?

As of Saturday morning, here are some of the areas with active wildfires:

• Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey (Bergen County)
• Pompton Lakes, New Jersey (Passaic County)
• Jackson Township, New Jersey (Ocean County)
• Riverhead, New York (Suffolk County)
• Evesham and Voorhees Townships, New Jersey (Burlington and Camden Counties)
• Glassboro, New Jersey (Gloucester County)

Fire risk reaches extreme levels in New Jersey, New York and Long Island

Red flag warnings are in place again for New York and much of the Tri-State on Saturday. New York City, Long Island, Northern New Jersey, Westchester County in New York, and Fairfield County in Connecticut are all under extreme fire risk this weekend.

Red flag warnings continue due to gusty winds, low humidity and dry brush.

THE red flag warning in New Jersey is in place until at least 6 p.m. Saturday.

During these extreme fire conditions, residents should not use outdoor grills or fire pits, or burn campfires or other fires outdoors.

Air quality falls in New York area

Smoke in the air is trapped in the atmosphere and isn’t going anywhere, according to Storm Team 4’s Raphael Miranda. Trapped smoke leads to lower air quality levels.

Air quality declined to “moderate” levels in the immediate New York region, with some hot areas near the fires dropping to “unhealthy for sensitive groups.”

Saturday morning, Brooklyn had some of the worst air quality in the region due to lingering smoke in the air. Hudson and Passaic counties in New Jersey also face air quality issues.

People should use caution when going outside if they smell smoke and limit outdoor exercise, such as running, until air quality improves.

This fall is now the driest yet with only 1.59 inches of rain in Central Park since September 1.

When will everything get better?

Air quality is expected to improve throughout the day Saturday.

Rain will finally arrive Sunday and Thursday, but only up to an inch of rain is expected, which will help, but it is still far from our normal precipitation amounts and will not get us out of these drought conditions.