Fire crews fighting Cumberland County Fires. APRIL 28, 2025 – Michaux State Forest, Pa
Commonwealth Media Services
Michaux State Forest fires were ‘human caused’: official
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Jeremy Long/WITF
Commonwealth Media Services
Fire crews fighting Cumberland County Fires. APRIL 28, 2025 – Michaux State Forest, Pa
Two fires that burned over 2,700 acres of forests in Cumberland County were caused by humans, according to one official with the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
The investigation into what started the two fires that burned for 14 days in Michaux State Forest is ongoing, but DCNR’s Bureau of Forestry Fire Protection Chief Mike Kern said the fires were not started by natural causes.
“I can say both fires were human caused,” he said. “We didn’t find any, any evidence of lightning or any other remote natural causes that could have started the fires. We determined they’re human caused and we’re still trying to figure out the exact circumstances under which they were started.”
Kern added that criminal charges could be filed. However, the investigation is expected to take several more months.
“There’s a lot of activity to sift through,” Kern said.
The Thompson Hollow Road Fire started on April 23 around 5 p.m. and the next day the Hammonds Rocks Fire started about 10 miles to the northeast around 2 p.m.
DCNR reported the fires were 100% contained on May 6.
Thompson Hollow Fire burned 2,248 acres and the Hammonds Rocks burned 470 acres.
During the peak of firefighting, there were 175 firefighters on scene from 160 different fire departments from Pennsylvania and surrounding states, Kern said.
Commonwealth Media Services
Fire crews fighting Cumberland County Fires. APRIL 28, 2025 – Michaux State Forest, Pa
Perfect conditions
It was almost the perfect storm for a large fire to burn in Michaux, Kern said.
A lingering drought from last fall helped make vegetation on the forest floor and trees drier than normal, Kern explained.
Add in some above-average warm days, dry weather conditions and a little wind, as well.
“Under those conditions, any fires that start could be hard to control,” Kern said.
Dozens of homes had to be evacuated during the fire.
Despite the conditions, no structures were damaged.
”There were certainly things that were threatened,” Kern said. “If no action was taken, I’m sure there would’ve been a lot more damage.”
The damaged forest is expected to recover as well, Kern said.
“Forests in Pennsylvania have evolved with fire in the past,” he said. “They generally regenerate on their own fairly well.”
Crews will monitor the forests and address any invasive species or erosion that occurs.
“We’re hopeful that they’ll revegetate naturally, but we will be monitoring,” he said.
Whether fires like these will become common is unknown, Kern said. However, there has been an uptick in fires since 2020.
“We’re waiting to see is that a long-term trend or is this a kind of blip in time,” he said. “Five years is not a whole lot in the grand scheme of human history of Earth and we’re just trying to monitor whether those are trends or just random occurrences.”
There have already been over 1,000 forest fires reported this calendar year, Kern said.
“There’s a lot of fires that people respond to and put out that don’t even make the news,” he said. “I appreciate everybody’s service and their contributions.”
Karen Hendricks contributed to this article.
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