Firefighters contain Seaside Heights boardwalk fire likely caused by cigarette
Firefighters crawled beneath the boardwalk to stop the spread.
There are several reasons why smoking is not allowed along the Seaside Heights boardwalk. A small fire broke out Sunday afternoon, and fire officials say it was likely caused by a cigarette. They say the situation could have been far worse.
Firefighters crawled beneath the boardwalk to stop the fire from spreading.
“Zero tolerance for smoking on the boardwalk, and barbecuing, because unfortunately, things like this happen," said Seaside Heights Volunteer Fire Company Chief Tim Farrell.
Farrell said crews were on scene within two minutes and reopened the boardwalk within 20 minutes. This happened beneath The Beachcomber Bar and Grill. The owner says his employees poured the first water.
“First, we came out with a pitcher of water, then we got buckets of water," said owner Mike Carbone. "Just kept slowly putting it down and slowly on top of the boardwalk.”
No one in Seaside needs a reminder of how quickly fire can spread. The 2013 fire that destroyed much of the boardwalk - just rebuilt after Superstorm Sandy - was caused by an electrical issue. That blaze started just blocks away from this quickly-contained fire.
“I was here for the last fire when it first started," Carbone said. "I didn’t want to have a repeat performance.”
“Situations like this hit home to a lot of us," said Farrell. "We remember that day.”
Human-caused fires go beyond the beaches. Last week, the Department of Environmental Protection reported that of the over 1,300 wildfires last year in New Jersey, just six started from a lightning strike - meaning humans started more than 99% of all the state’s wildfires.
