An improperly extinguished bonfire has been identified as the cause of a blaze that had burned 15,200 acres of Pine Barrens in southern Ocean County as of Thursday afternoon. An investigation determined that Kling set ablaze wooden pallets and then left the area before the fire was fully extinguished,

WARETOWN ― One of the worst wildfires in southern Ocean County history has more than doubled in size, scorching 8,500 acres, forcing the evacuation of some 3,000 people, and threatening 1,320 homes and buildings, officials said.