The Jones Road Wildfire is more than 50% contained, and forecasters say rain coming this weekend could help firefighters out even more.
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00:00Currently in the Northeast, we're getting ready for a big transition and we're looking forward to the rain because we need it here.
00:06We're dealing with this wildfire situation.
00:09Also, a 200-acre wildfire has prompted evacuations in part of Cumberland County of PA in southern Pennsylvania as well.
00:16So, again, a lot of things going on, but we have one big storyline for the weekend.
00:19A wet start to Saturday for the Northeast.
00:22The Jones Road wildfire there in Ocean County, New Jersey.
00:26We've seen another 100 acres burnt today.
00:28Containment now greater than 50 percent, so we're seeing progress.
00:33The growth of the fire has greatly been slowed.
00:35Most of the growth of this fire was back on Tuesday and Wednesday, but still some concerns.
00:39And another update, the number of structures threatened to drop from eight down to four.
00:44One commercial building was burnt.
00:45No homes destroyed in this fire, so that's good news.
00:48Nobody lost their home in this fire.
00:50But the air quality still being kind of directed in a negative way up toward New York City.
00:55Poor air quality there at times, moderate air quality in some neighborhoods.
00:59And as we look ahead to tomorrow morning, we're going to see a more decisive shift in the wind that should carry the smoke plume farther out to sea.
01:06Now, it will still impact areas like Tom's River, Forkett River, and other areas there in central New Jersey.
01:11And I hear that it's certainly not Forkett River.
01:17People emphatically say it's Forkett River.
01:19So there you go.
01:19There was a major fire there decades ago in Forkett River, New Jersey, far greater than this one.
01:24So here we have current temperatures.
01:2583 in Pittsburgh.
01:27Very warm there.
01:2853, though, in Portland.
01:29That difference all tied to that cool onshore flow.
01:33And that really cools you down there in Boston and in Portland this time of the year.
01:36But tomorrow, the winds are going to shift, more of a southwest wind that will carry some warmth into Boston, back up near 70 there.
01:42And look at the showers and storms rolling in from west to east Saturday.
01:46A cold front kicks in with widespread showers and thunderstorms.
01:49This is going to be helpful.
01:51We're going to see the humidity levels rise.
01:53We'll actually see rain reach back into areas around central New Jersey and into south Jersey as well.
01:58Ocean County, we'll see some of that.
02:00That'll also move through.
02:01Timing is admittedly tough.
02:02We don't want to deal with this on a Saturday, but we need the rain, so we'll take it and run with it, regardless of what the calendar says.
02:08Hopefully, you can at least make some plans that still capitalize on Saturday, despite it being some wetter weather.
02:14Sunday, cooler weather and drier weather returns to most areas.
02:18They're still skiing at Jay Peak up into the New England states, though.
02:23And we've got some more snow coming Sunday as well.