New Jersey Herald
Perched at the top of a 45-foot steel tower, high above the trees in the middle of the Kittatinny Ridge in northern Sussex County, is a small cube with walls of glass.
In that cube, with binoculars pressed to his eyes, Nick Valerio can see for miles and miles around him. He, just like the fire watch observers in the other 20 watchtowers throughout New Jersey, is on the lookout for the telltale plumes of smoke from wildfires. It s a very, very important job up here in the tower, Valerio said as he looked around. It s dispatching, accountability . it s knowing who s going to a fire, who s at the fire, he said of his responsibilities.