Wildfires burn in New York and New Jersey as red flag warnings are triggered across Northeast

Weather conditions triggered red flag warnings Tuesday in the Northeast and firefighters in California continued to battle a large wildfire that has burned over 20,000 acres.

Much of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut are under a red flag warning Tuesday because of dry and windy conditions. Massachusetts and Rhode Island are under the same warning, the National Weather Service in Boston said on X.

The agency urged people to avoid outdoor burning and activities that might produce sparks and to use caution when they dispose of igniters, such as cigarettes.

A historic drought continues to grip much of the Northeast. Three counties in New Jersey are in “extreme” drought, and the rest of the state has severe or moderate drought conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

All Amtrak services between New York Penn Station and New Haven, Connecticut, were suspended by 3:30 p.m. Tuesday because of a brush fire east of Penn Station. The fire caused trains in the area to lose power, Amtrak said in a statement.

Amtrak said trains approaching Penn Station were being moved out of the area at reduced speeds using diesel-powered engines. It didn't have an estimate for when normal operations will resume.

Crews in New Jersey and New York continued to battle a wildfire in Passaic and Orange counties. The inferno — dubbed the Jennings Creek Wildfire by the New Jersey Forest Fire Service — had grown to 3,500 acres and was 20% contained Tuesday morning.

Two residential structures in New Jersey were threatened by the fire, the agency said in an update just after 9 a.m. Tuesday. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Tuesday afternoon that there was a statewide "burn ban."

"What that means is completely avoid outdoor burning, don't leave any campfires ... unattended, don't have them, exercise extreme caution with outdoor grills and report fires immediately," she said.

The fall has been historically dry, said Jackie Bray, commissioner of the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services. She told reporters that in an average year, about 1,400 acres are burned in New York.

The Jennings Creek fire has already burned about 2,700, Bray said, which she said is "well above normal."

Another fire in Passaic County, New Jersey, the Cannonball 3 Wildfire, was fully contained Sunday, the state's forest fire service said.

In Massachusetts, more than a dozen brush fires were burning, NBC Boston reported. Dave Celino, chief fire warden for the state Department of Conservation and Recreation, told the station that there have been 247 fires across the state this month, burning almost 700 acres.

"Some of them have grown. Some of them have come out of containment because of the wind event," Celino said.

Across the country in California, the Mountain Fire continues to burn in Ventura County. The blaze, which started Nov. 6, has grown to 20,630 acres and was 54% contained Tuesday night, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire.

At least 207 homes and other structures have been destroyed, 90 have been confirmed damaged, and six fire personnel and civilians have been injured, Cal Fire said.

There will be a wind event this week, but nothing like the conditions that caused the fire to explode in size last week, officials said. Firefighters have made great progress since then, Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner said Monday.

"The fire is looking really good,” he said. He sought to allay fears of residents who feel the wind change.

"The Mountain Fire, we all feel comfortable, is buttoned up," Gardner said. "You may see flare-ups, you may see dust-ups, and you’re going to feel a lot of ash and dust if you’re downwind from this fire. So let's get ready for that."

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com