With little rainfall in the last few weeks, Long Island has been facing moderate drought conditions, increasing the risk of brush fires and making farming more difficult.
Only 0.1 inches of rain was measured at MacArthur Airport for the entire month of October, significantly below the average of around four inches. The precipitation total was vastly different from that of 2005 when a record 10.38 inches drenched the Island from a series of heavy storms.
“We’ve been pretty busy with brush fires,” said Mastic Beach Fire Commissioner Bill Biondi, whose department provided mutual aid for blazes battled by the Manorville and Brookhaven companies. “People need to be careful with burning leaves, cigarettes—anything that can start a fire,” the commissioner warned.
The record rainfall of 2005 quenched a landscape scorched by the Sunrise Fire of August 1995, one of the most severe wildfires in New York State history that burned through approximately 5,500 acres in Suffolk’s Central Pine Barrens. Originating near Suffolk Community College’s Eastern Campus, the blaze quickly escalated due to extremely dry conditions, strong winds, and high temperatures after a prolonged drought. The blaze, known as the “Perfect Firestorm,” reached heights of up to 200 feet. It even managed to jump across the 400-foot width of Sunrise Highway, a significant barrier that firefighters had hoped would stop it.
More than 2,000 firefighters from across Long Island, New York City, and nearby states answered the call to fight the inferno. In one of the largest mutual aid operations ever in New York, the responders faced intense conditions with smoke, extreme heat, and embers filling the sky, and a surreal environment where day appeared like night. Despite the magnitude of the fire and the danger involved, no lives were lost, and only a few structures were damaged.
As reported by the U.S. Drought Monitor, the recent dry conditions have increased the workload of local farmers, who have redoubled their efforts to keep crops hydrated. Over at the F&W Sod Farm in Yaphank, John Schmitt is keeping the irrigation pumps running. “It’s been a lot of work making sure the fields are watered,” he noted. “The sod needs proper moisture to grow and establish a strong root base.”
Long Island is New York’s most productive agricultural region, with sod farming and wineries significantly adding to the local economy.