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JACKSON, NJ — A Brick Township man has been charged with arson in connection with a 350-acre wildfire in the Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area that threatened homes and forced evacuations, the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office said Saturday.
Richard M. Shashaty, 37, also has been charged with a violation of the regulatory provisions relating to firearms in connection with the Shotgun Wildfire that started Wednesday, Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said.
Investigators determined the wildfire started behind a berm in the southwest corner of the range at the Central Jersey Rifle and Pistol Club on South Stump Tavern Road, and was caused by magnesium shards of a Dragons Breath 12-gauge shotgun shell that ignited “available combustibles” on the berm of the shooting range.
They also were able to determine that Shashaty was the person who had fired the shells, authorities said.
Dragons breath shells are believed to have been developed as a special effects tool in the mid-20th century, according to Ammunition Depot. The shells contain chemicals and magnesium flakes that, when the shell is fired, ignite, “creating a stunning pyrotechnic display of sparks and flames that can shoot out to about 100 feet,” the website says.
The shells are banned in multiple states because of their potential to cause fires or injury, the site says. That includes in New Jersey, Billhimer said.
The fire at the gun club was reported at 12:17 p.m., New Jersey Forest Fire Service officials said Wednesday night, and threatened 25 homes and structures. Authorities issued mandatory evacuations for six homes on the west side of South Stump Tavern Road, and voluntary evacuations for several others on the east side, but those evacuations were lifted Wednesday night.
The fire has consumed 350 acres and was 90 percent contained as of Friday night, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said. No homes or structures were lost to the fire, officials said.
South Stump Tavern Road reopened to traffic Saturday evening, Jackson Township police said.
The fire is expected to continue to smolder for a while, until significant rainfall soaks the area. The Forest Fire Service is continuing to monitor it, authorities said.
Shashaty surrendered to Jackson Township Police Headquarters in the presence of his attorney on Saturday and is being held at the Ocean County Jail in Toms River pending a detention hearing, authorities said.
The prosecutor’s office and the Department of Environmental Protection said the following agencies were involved in the investigation: the prosecutor’s office Major Crime Unit-Arson Squad, New Jersey Forest Fire Service, Ocean County Fire Marshal’s Office, Jackson Township Police Department, New Jersey State Fire Marshal’s Office, New Jersey State Police Office of Emergency Management, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection-New Jersey Fish and Wildlife, and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit.