Fire at Minnewaska State Park: Firefighters battle dry weather as flames spread in Ulster
The fire that has burned through Minnewaska State Park this week is about 20% contained and is expected to burn itself out, though it might take a week or two, Gov. Kathy Hochul said Thursday.
Hochul spoke at a news briefing in Ellenville, where she was joined by county and state officials who spoke about the effort to contain the fire at Napanoch Point, which may spread as dry weather continues into the weekend. Two other fires that broke out around the park, near Stony Kill and Wurtsboro, have been completely contained, she said.
The Napanoch Point fire, which was sparked by lightning strikes last weekend in Ulster County, spread to about 270 acres at one point this week. It was down to about 160 acres on Thursday, but may climb again as dry weather continues throughout much of New York, officials said.
"This is an extraordinarily dry year," said Basil Seggos, commissioner of the state Department of Environmental Conservation.
Much of the state is under a drought watch, and the dry conditions have allowed the fire to spread since it started near Napanoch Point after a storm rolled through the region on Friday, Aug. 26.
The fire has forced Minnewaska State Park, including Sam's Point Preserve, to close until further notice. The 24,000-acre park, a popular hiking destination on the Shawangunk Mountains, will be shut down to visitors at least through Labor Day. Anyone with reservations for Saturday, Sunday or Monday over Labor Day weekend will be notified and refunded, officials said.
"We’ll be watching conditions on the ground. As soon as this fire looks like it’s really died out, we’ll be opening it right away," said Erik Kulleseid, commissioner of the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.
Hochul noted the run of natural disasters that have hit Ulster in the past year, including summer and winter storms that knocked out power to thousands of people for days and brought the governor to the region.
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Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan thanked everyone for the collaborative effort, from the firefighters on the ground to the ladies auxiliary teams from local fire departments who have prepared 500 meals a day for the people working on this.
Minnewaska State Park "means a lot to a lot of people in this community," he said. "I’m really sad and concerned that we have had so many really horrific natural disasters in the last year here in our county, but I’m even more proud of how we’ve responded, how we’ve come together, how we’ve supported each other."
More than 200 firefighters, volunteers, pilots and bulldozer operators have been working to cut fire breaks in the ground and contain the flames, which have burned since three lightning strikes occurred in the park.
Though the dry weather has been a challenge, Hochul said Thursday there is no threat to lives or structures at this point. DEC forest rangers have been leading the coalition of firefighters from around the area, as well as 20 Canadian firefighters from Quebec and members of the National Guard.
The National Guard and state police have each been deploying two helicopters daily to drop tens of thousands of gallons of water a day on the fire.
Many firefighters from around the Hudson Valley have helped, including from Accord, Kerhonkson, Ellenville, Cragsmoor, Napanoch, Walker Valley, Marlboro, Olive, Wallkill, New Paltz Rescue, Mohonk Preserve, Amenia, Hyde Park, Milan, Millbrook, New Hamburg, Red Hook, Rhinebeck, Roosevelt, Tivoli and Union Vale.
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This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Minnewaska forest fire challenges firefighters in Ulster County
