Brush Fire Threatening Homes In Gerritsen Beach [Updated]

Firefighters are battling a brush fire spreading through the southern end of Marine Park — and working to keep the flames from catching onto nearby homes.

According to the FDNY, 60 firefighters were called at 4:16pm to Avenue x and Burnett Street, in Gerritsen Beach, where a row of single-family homes sits directly across the park.

The fire is still not under control and first responders have not determined the cause of the flames, the FDNY says. No injuries were reported.

Fires in the wildlife preserve in the southern portion of Marine Park have sprung up several times in the past. A 2012 brush fire near Burnett Street and Whitney Avenue — a block away from the one raging today — took several hours for the FDNY to get under control. The same year, FDNY Marine Units had to ride up underneath Gerritsen Inlet Bridge to douse another brush fire with water. And in October, fire crews discovered a burning SUV hidden among the shrubs in the park.

Update [March 1, 5:30pm]: The FDNY reports the brush fire is under control.