Forest fire breaks out at major military gunnery range in NJ

A fast-moving forest fire broke out Tuesday at a major military gunnery range in South Jersey, but no injuries or property damage were reported.

The New Jersey Forest Fire Service responded around 2:15 p.m. to the Warren Grove Air to Ground Range in Ocean and Burlington counties, where weapons testing had been scheduled for late Tuesday morning. It wasn't immediately clear if the testing had taken place and, if it did, played a role in the fire.

The blaze had burned roughly 1,167 acres and was 80% contained, the forest fire service said.

Earlier on Tuesday, the fire service said crews were burning brush ahead of the blaze to prevent its spread.

The range covers 9,400 acres and 60 miles of airspace, according to the New Jersey National Guard. It’s used for a variety of military exercises, including weapons delivery practice for helicopters and other aircraft teams, laser training, and gunnery and munitions drills.

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As of Wednesday, no structures were threatened and no evacuations were made.

The range, which is secluded from roads by dense forests, is about 34 miles south of Joint Base Maguire-Dix, one of the largest military facilities in New Jersey.

It also was the scene of a 2007 fire that burned 17,000 acres and led to the evacuation of thousands of residents. That fire, which was touched off when a pilot dropped a flare into the range during a training exercise, destroyed four homes and damaged about 50 others.