New Jersey Forest Fire Service Celebrates Grand Opening of Veterans Forest Fire Lookout Tower
Photo by JOHN RIETHThe new Veterans Fire Lookout Tower.
Photo by JOHN RIETHForest Fire Observer Justin Sauers was the last Forest Fire Observer to work in the Lakewood Fire Tower, and the first to work the new Veterans Fire Tower.
Photo by JOHN RIETHState Forest Fire Warden (Chief) William Donnelly speaks at the grand opening.
Photo by JOHN RIETHVarious State and local officials spoke and helped cut the Red Tape, to officially open the Veterans Tower.
New Jersey Forest Fire Service celebrates the grand opening of the brand new " Veterans" Forest Fire Lookout Tower, in Jackson Township (Ocean County), New Jersey. The name was to honor all of our Veterans in New Jersey!
The new tower, which is the first one built in 47 years, replaces what was the newest tower, which was the Lakewood Tower. After the lease expired on the land for the Lakewood Tower, this new 130-foot fire lookout was built on the New Jersey Forestry Service FREC or Forest Resource Education Center on County Rt 527 in Jackson. The new tower can see into parts of northern and western Ocean County, Southern and western Monmouth, eastern Mercer, southern Middlesex, and northern Burlington counties.
Currently, New Jersey Forest Fire Service operates 21 forest fire lookout towers throughout New Jersey, most of which are over or close to 100-years-old!
The towers are the first line of of wildfire defense, which includes early detection and rapid response. The New Jersey Fire Lookout Towers still report more than half of the wildfires in New Jersey when the towers are staff, which is any time the wildland fuels are dry enough to burn.
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