Gusty winds and low humidity are helping to fuel wildfires burning across the Northeast, with cities in the region on high alert Saturday.

Red flag warnings – indicating an increased risk of fire danger due to warm temperatures, very low humidity and stronger winds – were in place for some northeastern cities until Saturday afternoon.

A number of cities in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island will be under red flag warnings from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, according to National Meteorological Service.

The vegetation in the area remains very dry. The region is about 6 to 8 inches behind September 1 precipitation. A cold front is expected to move through the region on Sunday, bringing up to 1 inch of rain.

A brush fire in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park burned overnight Friday into Saturday after about 2 acres of dry vegetation caught fire during strong wind gusts, the New York Fire Department said. said on X. Firefighters worked overnight to extinguish the fire.

“This has been a historically dry time for New York City, and more than 100 brush fires have occurred this month alone,” the FDNY said.

In Pennsylvania, firefighters are working to contain a wildfire in Berks County due to dry and windy conditions. The fire broke out around 11:30 p.m. Friday on Mount Neversink in Reading, where smoke could be seen rising from the fire.

The fire prompted the evacuation of nearby residents at Amanda E. Stout Elementary School, according to Reading Mayor Eddie Morán.

“The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) Division of Forestry will lead the firefighting and cleanup operation, which is expected to continue for several days, coordinating any additional resources needed,” Morán said.

Two fires are burning in Passaic County, New Jersey: the Cannonball 3 Fire in Pompton Lakes and the Jennings Creek Fire in West Milford, the latter of which is also burning in part of Orange County, New York.

The The 175-acre Cannonball 3 Wildfire is 75% restricted.according to the New Jersey Wildfire Service. Fifty-five structures are threatened by the fire, and its cause is under investigation.

The fire is on private property owned by chemical company DuPont, New Jersey Fire Chief Bill Donnelly said at a news conference Saturday.

Officials were first notified of the fire around 3 p.m. Friday and “over time it started to grow with all the wind,” Mayor Mike Serra said at the news conference.

A DuPont representative did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment late Saturday.

The Jennings Creek fire, which Donnelly said firefighters first saw Friday while en route to New York, has has burned 2,000 acres and threatens 10 structures. It is 0% content.

Donnelly said the winds changed overnight, pushing the fire back across the New Jersey border. Two helicopters and 33 firefighters are working to put out the blaze, he said.

The fire is the largest this year, Donnelly said, and it’s unclear how it started.

Several local agencies confirmed that one person died while fighting the fire.

The Plattekill Fire Department said the person is a state forester who died Saturday while fighting the Greenwood Lake, New York, fire.

A tree fell on the guard, killing him, Eastern Dutchess Fire and Rescue said. I didn’t identify him.

“Rip bro, your shift done job well done,” Eastern Dutchess County officials said.

The New Jersey Forest Fire Service responded to more than 400 fires last month and about 40 fire calls Friday and Saturday, Donnelly said, noting that some are still burning while others have been contained.

Donnelly said around the same time last year, the department responded to 27 fires that burned a total of just eight acres in a two-week period. But in the past month, he said, they have responded to more than 400 fires covering more than 800 acres, a result of the dry conditions.

Another 39-acre fire is burning in Bergen County it is 75% containedaccording to the state fire service.

One of the biggest problems for New Jersey firefighters is the “reignition factor,” Donnelly said, noting that some fires that started in July are burning again.

Active fires have prompted air quality alerts in both New Jersey and New York, with residents discouraged from vigorous outdoor activities.

On the West Coast, The mountain fire continues to burn in Ventura County, California, and has spread to more than 20,600 acres, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire). The fire was 21% extinguished. 17:29 PT Its cause is under investigation.

Air quality alerts are in effect across Southern California due to wildfire smoke.

CORRECTION (November 9, 2024, 7:46 PM ET): An earlier version of this article misstated the name of a wildfire burning in Passaic County, New Jersey, and Orange County, New York. It’s the Jennings Creek fire, not the Jennings Creed fire.