Many think wildfires are a West Coast disaster - but climate change now puts the East Coast at more risk

Amid one of the worst droughts the region has seen, New York and New Jersey were battling wildfires last weekend - and researchers say climate change will only make the situation worse.

The fires sparked amid windy weather, warm temperatures and extremely dry conditions. Smoke from New Jersey’s 3,000-acre Jennings Creek Fire was observable from space and the massive plume could be seen as far away as upstate New York. A brush fire started in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park Friday night, burning two acres of dry vegetation at the popular spot. New York City firefighters battled the blaze for hours before it was extinguished.

Upstate, a parks employee, 18-year-old Dariel Vasquez, was killed Saturday while batting a fire in Sterling Forest.

While many associate wildfire season with the western states, fire weather is becoming more common in the Northeast, according to nonprofit Climate Central. The group said Monday that parts of northern New Jersey and coastal New York are experiencing at least 10 more days of fire weather each year compared to the 1970s.

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These threats come on the heels of the second-warmest October in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s 130 years. In October, a record 87 percent of the nation was either in drought or unusually dry conditions.

Notably, the greatest increase in fire weather days now occurs during spring. Across the nation, the threat of wildfires is rising, Climate Central noted.

“Wildfire seasons are lengthening and intensifying, particularly in the West. Many parts of the East have seen smaller but impactful increases in fire weather days,” the group noted in a recently released report.

Hot temperatures can make wildfires more likely to ignite, the group stated. The group added the number of low humidity night is decreasing as well. Those nights help firefighters gain control over a brush fire. The low humidity levels also leave vegetation dry and prone to burning. Wind is also helping spread fires as it supplies additional oxygen that helps them burn more rapidly.

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Fortunately for the Northeast, some precipitation Sunday night has put the kibosh to that drought, and the National Weather Service says cooler temperatures are on the way. The agency’s New York City office saw its highest rainfall totals since late September.

The New York City Fire Department said it has responded to hundreds of brush fires in the five boroughs during the last few weeks. Mayor Eric Adams has banned grilling in public parks as a result.

The wildfires also brought unhealthy air quality for the area’s millions of residents, who were advised to close their windows and mask up while outdoors. The skies in the Big Apple, while still mostly blue on Saturday, were tinted by the smoke.

"Anyone who has a lung ailment, these fires ... can really be devastating. It can really make someone get very sick very quickly. Now, that's not to say that normal healthy people may not get sick, but they're much less at risk," said Dr. Anthony Saleh, a pulmonologist at New York-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital told CBS News.