An uncontained wildfire has spread more than 8,500 acres in New Jersey, prompting evacuations in Ocean County areas, including Waretown and Barnegat.

A forest wildfire in Ocean County, New Jersey, just miles from the Shore had ballooned to 11,500 acres as of Wednesday morning and was still spreading, according to state officials. The fire could become New Jersey’s largest in 20 years,

A sprawling wildfire burning in New Jersey's Pinelands near Atlantic Ocean beach towns could become the largest in the state in about 20 years, having already consumed some 11,500 acres, officials said on Wednesday.