New York region, in the grip of severe drought, battles a series of fires

The New York region is facing a series of fires of rare vigor in the northeastern United States. The cause is a particularly long period of drought, which puts water reserves to the test. “The reality is that the drought we are experiencing is just one example of the impact of climate change on our territory today, not in the distant future, but here and now”New Jersey Democratic Governor Phil Murphy said during a press conference on Wednesday (November 13).

Since Friday, firefighters from New York and New Jersey have been battling fires that have burned thousands of acres around the Jennings Creek forest river, an hour's drive from Manhattan's skyscrapers. The fires caused the death on Saturday of an 18-year-old New York State parks employee, probably killed by a falling tree while he was participating in operations.

Driven by winds and favored by very low humidity, fires have multiplied since the beginning of October and have already burned nearly 4,500 hectares in New Jersey, compared to 1,600 on average each year at that time. . The great city of New York is not spared. Firefighters, some aboard a boat, were battling a large brush fire Wednesday evening in the large Inwood Hill park, far north of Manhattan.

Save water

The lack of rain doesn't help. While Hurricane Helene devastated entire regions further south in late September, killing at least 101 people in North Carolina, New York and its surrounding area did not experience significant rain during the months of September and October, and still not in November. “It has been more than twenty years since we have measured such an episode of drought in the northeast of the United States”Brian Fuchs, a climatologist at the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, told Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Local authorities have asked the population to save water. All 8.5 million New Yorkers are being asked to report any open fire hydrants, take quicker showers and only flush toilets if necessary. Barbecues in public areas have also been banned, with fires, quickly brought under control, also breaking out this weekend in Prospect Park, the large green lung in the heart of Brooklyn.

New York is supplied with water by reservoirs along the region's rivers, which reached 62% of their capacity on Wednesday, compared to 79.2% in normal times. “Unfortunately, it appears that these unseasonably dry conditions are unlikely to end any time soon, as all indications are that a very dry winter lies ahead.”declared the governor of New Jersey.

Like Phil Murphy, other officials have attributed this drought to climate change. According to Brian Fuchs, a drought episode is not totally unusual in the northeastern United States. “But temperatures are higher because of climate change. And these higher temperatures can contribute to droughts not seen in the past.”he explained to AFP. “We are moving more and more quickly from very humid periods to very dry periods, and vice versa”he added.