The wildfire that has swept across Ocean County over the last two days continued to grow Wednesday night but was 50% contained, according to a statement from the New Jersey Forest Fire Service.

The blaze — called the “Jones Road Wildfire” — began in the Greenwood Wildlife Management Area Tuesday morning and quickly spread across thousands of acres and forced 5,000 people from their homes.

As of 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, it had consumed 13,250 acres, the service said.

Twelve structures were still threatened by the inferno but all the residents evacuated on Tuesday night in Lacey and Ocean Townships were allowed to return to their homes.

One building — Liberty Door & Awning on Old Shore Road in Lacey — caught fire Tuesday in an industrial complex. Materials housed outside another building also burned. They were the only reported damage to structures as of Wednesday night, state officials said.

The wildfire also threatened farms and closed down a 17-mile stretch of the Garden State Parkway in both directions for hours Tuesday. The road reopened early Wednesday morning.

Power has been restored to every home and businesses in the area of the fire, JCP&L announced around 5 p.m Wednesday. As many as 25,000 people were in the dark Tuesday night when the crews intentionally cut power to certain areas to aid fire suppression efforts.

Comcast said it opened up 10,000 wifi hotspots across Ocean County Wednesday to help people impacted by the fire.

Many shelters had emptied out by Wednesday afternoon including one at Southern Regional High School, which was later moved to St. Mary’s Parish in Manahawkin to offer a warming and cooling station for evacuees, officials said.

Winds that drove the fire on Tuesday subsided Wednesday, but were still strong enough to create air quality alerts as far away as Cape May County, authorities said.

In Lacey Township, police warned that visibility will be affected by heavy smoke conditions throughout the night and residents were asked to steer clear of areas where firefighters were operating.

The cause of the fire is under investigation and no injuries have been reported. The state Forest Fire Service is investigating the origin of the fire along with local authorities, including the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, authorities said.

Acting Gov. Tahesha Way declared a state of emergency in Ocean County Wednesday.

The fire is one of the largest in New Jersey in the past 20 years, but is still smaller than a June 2022 fire that scorched about 15,000 acres in Wharton State Forest in the Pine Barrens in Burlington and Atlantic counties.

That fire, known as the Mullica River Wildfire, was believed to be sparked by an unattended campfire.

Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.

Chris Sheldon may be reached at [email protected].