A man set wooden pallets on fire and failed to properly put them out in New Jersey's Pine Barrens, sparking a quick-moving wildfire with smoke affecting the air quality in the New York City area, authorities said Thursday.

A New Jersey teenager has been charged with arson in connection with a wildfire in the Pinelands region that has already scorched 15,000 acres and could grow into the largest blaze in the state since 2007,