According to authorities, the suspected cause of the recent Long Island wildfires was a resident attempting to make s’mores in their backyard. On Saturday, March 8th, 2025, a person in Suffolk County, New York, reportedly used cardboard to start a fire around 9:30 a.m. ET.
Strong northwest winds made it difficult to ignite initially, but once lit, the fire quickly spread beyond control. Embers from this initial blaze are believed to have been carried by winds gusting up to 45 mph, sparking multiple fires that burned approximately 600 acres of the Pine Barrens region.
Suffolk County Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina described this as the “operating theory,” supported by an ongoing investigation involving 25 arson detectives, though it’s considered strongly accidental in origin as of this post.
The incident led to a state of emergency, injured two firefighters and damaged at least two commercial structures, with over 600 firefighters from 80 volunteer departments responding to the crisis.
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