Multiple wildfires broke out on Long Island on Saturday amid high-risk fire conditions of low humidity and gusty winds, forcing the closure of sections of a highway in Suffolk County and drawing the response of dozens of agencies.
At a news conference on Saturday evening, Ed Romaine, the Suffolk County executive, said that one firefighter was hospitalized with second-degree burns to the face. Two structures also burned in the fire, he said.
“We maximized our firefighting capabilities to stop this fire from spreading and then we tried to contain it,” Mr. Romaine said. “But it is not under control as I speak.”
Mr. Romaine added that he did not expect the fire to be fully out until Sunday because of the high winds.
The fire in the Westhampton area was roughly 50 percent contained by Saturday evening, Rudy Sunderman, the Suffolk County fire coordinator, said at the news conference.
Mr. Romaine said in a statement earlier that more than 80 agencies were involved in fighting three fires in eastern Long Island.
“The National Guard has begun water dumps,” he said in a statement.
An HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopter from the 106th Rescue Wing and three New York Army National Guard helicopters based in Ronkonkoma were helping in the response, the New York National Guard said in a news release.
Fire trucks and crews from the Francis S. Gabreski Air National Guard Base in Westhampton Beach were also deployed. The base was evacuated as a precautionary measure, the National Guard said.
Bill Dalton, a former chief of the Westhampton Beach Fire Department who is helping coordinate his department’s response, said several departments have deployed brush trucks, which are smaller fire trucks designed to fight wildfires.
Drones were mobilized to get a bird’s-eye view of the fires, which stretched in a seven-mile radius in the area around Westhampton and Eastport on the South Shore.
“We have a lot of assets on the ground, lot of communication as to where the hot spots are,” he said. “They’re popping up all over.”
The New York State Police confirmed that all lanes of the Sunrise Highway were closed eastbound between Exit 62 and Exit 64. County Road 31 southbound was also closed, according to the Southampton Police Department.
Gov. Kathy Hochul said the fires were in the Pine Barrens, a 105,000-acre nature park. The governor declared a state of emergency on Saturday afternoon, said a spokesman, Avi Small.
“We are in close communication with local partners on Long Island to coordinate assistance and make sure they have the resources they need to protect their communities,” Ms. Hochul said on social media.
The National Weather Service had warned earlier on social media that low humidity and northwest winds of 30 to 35 miles per hour would create an “elevated risk for fire spread.”
On Saturday the forecast materialized.
“We have gusty north-to-northwest winds, and they’re making it difficult to contain any fires that develop,” Jay Engle, a meteorologist with the Weather Service, said of conditions on Long Island on Saturday.
Winds are expected to calm overnight and humidity levels will increase, giving firefighters a break. But the winds are expected to return on Sunday.
“There will be heightened fire risk again tomorrow,” Mr. Engle said.
“Use extreme caution with all potential ignition sources (machinery, cigarettes, matches),” the Weather Service said. “Any fires may spread quickly.”
On Montauk Highway in Westhampton, police vehicles blocked roads leading to the Francis S. Gabreski Airport.
Salvatore Fracapane, 19, watched live television coverage of the fires at his job at a convenience store nearby. He said he saw smoke and smelled “burning wood chips” around 1 p.m., then saw “fire trucks from everywhere” rushing to the scene.
“I thought it was serious, seeing all those fire trucks out here,” he said.
Amy Graff, Natalie Chandler and Simon J. Levien contributed reporting.
