Damage from sprawling Prospect Park brush fire may take years to repair, officials say

The damage from the massive fire that broke out in Prospect Park earlier this month will take years and hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair, according to the nonprofit that runs the green space.

The Nov. 8 blaze enveloped 2 acres near the park’s Nethermead meadow, setting a section of native forest aflame. A firefighter was hospitalized after being injured while battling the blaze.

Officials from the Prospect Park Alliance on Wednesday reported the work to restore the area could take up to three years and cost as much as $275,000.

“This estimate includes funding to clear the site of debris, stabilize the slopes and implement erosion control measures, and to seed and replant with a mix of native climate adapted species over the next three years,” Prospect Park Alliance spokesperson Laura Robinson wrote in a statement.

Robinson said the price tag for the work could be lower if arborists find large canopy trees that loom over the burnt out section of the park do not need to be uprooted and replaced.

The cause of the blaze remains under investigation by the city fire department. Days after it broke out, charred remnants of an apparent encampment — including a scorched umbrella, blackened pots and a barbecue grill — were still at the burn site.

The scorching of Brooklyn’s backyard came amid a historic drought in the city. It was far from the only brush fire to break out in the five boroughs’ green spaces while they’ve been starved of rain. FDNY officials reported the department has battled more than 371 brush fires so far in 2024, the most ever recorded in a calendar year.

The true scope of the damage in Prospect Park will become more clear as the alliance continues to track the damage to trees when they emerge from their winter dormancy next spring.

City officials say the recent rain that broke this fall’s historic dry spell still isn’t enough to lift the drought warning that’s been in place across the five boroughs since Nov. 18.