OCEAN COUNTY, N.J. (WPIX) – A 19-year-old was charged with arson in connection with the wildfire that’s ravaging parts of New Jersey, the Forest Fire Service announced Thursday.

Officials said Joseph Kling was accused of improperly extinguishing a bonfire that caused the Jones Road Wildfire to spark on Tuesday. Kling, of Waretown, New Jersey, allegedly set wooden pallets on fire and left the area before they were put out, according to officials.

The wildfire has scorched around 15,000 acres in Ocean County, the Forest Fire Service said in a Facebook post. It was roughly 50% contained as of Wednesday evening.

Thousands of residents were forced to evacuate on Tuesday, but were later allowed to go back to their homes. More than 25,000 customers suffered sweeping power outages on Wednesday as firefighters battled the flames, but it was later turned back on, officials said.

Kling is facing charges of aggravated arson and arson, according to officials. He’s being held in Ocean County Jail pending a detention hearing.

Higher-than-normal pollution levels were expected Thursday in New York City, Rockland and Westchester counties, and in Long Island’s Nassau and Suffolk counties, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation advised Wednesday. The fire is roughly 54 miles south of New York City.

It said “going indoors may reduce exposure” to problems such as eye, nose and throat irritation, coughing, sneezing and shortness of breath.

The fire in the southern part of New Jersey could continue to burn for days before rain later this week, officials said. No one has been injured so far in the blaze. A single commercial building and some vehicles were destroyed in the fire, while 12 structures remained threatened Wednesday evening.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.