Healey urges caution amid historic wildfires
MIDDLETON — Gov. Maura Healey is urging people to conserve water and take steps to prevent wildfires that have scorched thousands of acres of land across the state amid historic drought conditions.
Healey said many of the fires, including those that have engulfed several north of Boston communities in recent days, have been largely caused by human activity.
“Now is not the time to burn leaves,” Healey said in remarks outside the Middleton Fire Department, flanked by firefighters, emergency management personnel and local elected officials. “Now is not the time to go outside and light a fire out back, and sit around one of our stoves. It’s just not that time.”
The governor also urged people to conserve water to offset the impact of drought conditions as firefighters continue to battle the wildfires.
“It’s really important that people do things like run their dishwasher less frequently. Make sure you’re running your washing machine only at full capacity. Take shorter showers,” Healey said. “Fix plumbing leaks immediately.”
Firefighters in Massachusetts have battled more than 1,000 wildfires so far this year, including 261 in November, according to the state Department of Conservation & Recreation, as well as local fire departments. That’s a more than 1,200% increase over 2023, state officials said.
More than 2,000 acres have burned statewide, according to the data. Several firefighters have been injured battling the blazes.
Red flag warnings remain active as of Tuesday for most of Massachusetts due to the high risk of wildfires fueled by strong winds and extremely dry conditions, Healey administration officials said.
As of Tuesday, there were more than 200 active wildfires in the state, officials said. In Lynn, the largest fire in nearly three decades has scorched more than 400 acres in the Lynn Woods Reservation. The reservation remains closed to the public.
Fire officials said the record drought coupled with wind, low humidity and an abundance of fuel sources like fallen leaves and dry wood have made conditions ripe for such fires.
“Any fire will spread quickly and will become very difficult to control,” Fire Marshal Jon Davine said in remarks. “The fire will burn wide and it will burn deep into the ground.”
Massachusetts isn’t alone in battling wildfires this fall: Much of the northeast is dealing with record conditions.
In New York, residents were being evacuated from some communities where smoke from nearby wildfires raised concerns about the health impacts.
An 18-year-old New York forest ranger volunteer was killed Saturday by a falling tree while battling the deadly “Jennings Creek” wildfire along the New Jersey border, authorities said.
Christian M. Wade covers the Massachusetts Statehouse for North of Boston Media Group’s newspapers and websites. Email him at cwade@cnhinews.com.