Crews battle wildfires on both coasts of United States

Wildfires on both coasts of the United States are being fought by emergency crews.

The blazes include one in New York and New Jersey that killed a parks employee and postponed Veterans Day plans, and another in southern California that destroyed more than 130 structures.

Firefighters continue to make progress against a wildfire north-west of Los Angeles in Ventura County that broke out last Wednesday and quickly exploded in size due to dry, warm and gusty winds.

The Mountain Fire prompted thousands of residents to flee their homes and was 31% contained yesterday, up from 26% the previous day.

The fire's size remains around 83sq/km. The cause is under investigation.

Some people have been allowed to return to their homes but road closures and evacuation warnings remain in effect in some areas, according to the Ventura County Fire Department.

Meanwhile, New York State Police said they are investigating the death of Dariel Vasquez, an 18-year-old state parks employee who died when a tree fell on him on Saturday afternoon as he battled a major brush fire in Sterling Forest, located in Greenwood Lake, near the New Jersey border.

New Jersey’s state forest fire service said that the blaze - dubbed the Jennings Creek Wildfire - was threatening 25 structures, including two homes in New Jersey.

In West Milford, New Jersey, a Veterans Day ceremony was postponed to later in the month because of the firefighting effort.

Health advisories were issued for parts of New York, including New York City, and north-eastern New Jersey due to unhealthy air quality caused by smoke from the fires.

People are urged to limit strenuous outdoor physical activity if possible.

But there was progress on other fires.

New Jersey officials reported 75% containment of a 70-hectare fire in the Pompton Lakes area of Passaic County that was threatening 55 homes, although no evacuations had been ordered, as well as progress made on other fires burning in the state amid bone-dry conditions.

In New Jersey, Ocean County prosecutors announced on Saturday arson and firearms charges in connection with a 142-hectare Jackson Township fire that started last Wednesday.

The blaze was largely contained by the end of the week, officials said.

They added that the fire was sparked by magnesium shards from a shotgun round on a shooting range.

In Massachusetts, one wildfire among several fuelled by powerful wind gusts and dry leaves has burned hundreds of hectares in the Lynn Woods Reservation, a municipal park extending across about 9sq/km in the city around 16km north of Boston.

The Lynn Fire Department cited "a dry spell we have not seen during this time of year in many years".