MARCH 2, 2015
POINT PLEASANT BEACH, NEW JERSEY
A gas explosion set off a heavy fire that injured a tenant
and destroyed a one-story home early Monday morning—the second blast in under a
week, Ocean County authorities said.
Firefighters spent hours knocking down the fire early Monday
at a one-story garage apartment at the back of 307 Cooks Lane. A fire victim
living in the structure said it ignited after he smelled gas, according to a
statement from the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office spokesman, Al Della Fave.
The victim, an unidentified 47-year-old man, suffered
injuries affecting 40 to 50 percent of his body, Della Fave said. He was taken
to Jersey Shore University Medical Center and transferred to Saint Barnabas
Burn Center for treatment. The man was later listed in stable condition.
The man told authorities that he woke up to the smell of
gas, Della Fave said. After he went to the bathroom and turned on the light
switch, the entire house went up in flames.
Firefighters were called to the scene 1:47 a.m., finding a
fully involved structure fire, said Point Pleasant Beach Fire Chief John
Pasola. He said the house was fully involved and collapsing.
Pasola said the two-story house at the front of the property
was at risk of exposure from the flames. That and the icy weather prompted him
to upgrade the fire to a second alarm.
Point Pleasant Beach Fire extinguished the remaining fire
without incident, Pasola said. The Ocean County Prosecutor's Office Arson Unit,
Ocean County Fire Marshall and Ocean County Sheriff's Department CSI responded
to conduct the investigation into the origin and cause of the leak leading to
the explosion.
No one on Cooks Lane was evacuated, Pasola said. He said he
didn't know if the homeowners of the two-story house were there at the time of
the fire.
New Jersey Natural Gas responded and secured the gas meter.
Neighbors described a gas explosion that completely vaporized
a home on Cooks Lane as sounding like an earthquake that woke them from a sound
sleep.
"After I heard the boom I heard sirens in the distance.
I thought it was something in town," said Rose Marie Posella. "We
looked out the back door and saw an inferno next door. The flames were in the
trees."
Posella's home is about 50 feet from the explosion and two
houses down.
Brian Kiddey, who lives directly next door at 305 Cooks
Lane, said when he awoke and looked outside he saw a man rolling around in the
snow.
"He must have been blown nearly 30 feet," said
Kiddey.
From the street some of the remaining foundation is visible,
but the yard is strewn with charred wood, and other remains such as a bed
spring and a stove.
Ocean County Fire officials are still on the scene, along
with NJ natural Gas and pt. Beach police.
Source: www.app.com
//-----------------------------------------------------------------//
Source: www.nj.com
//-----------------------------------------------------------------//
POINT PLEASANT BEACH — A Point Pleasant Beach man was badly
burned when his house erupted in flames in a natural gas explosion early Monday
morning.
The explosion, at a house on Cooks Lane, is the second
explosion from a natural gas leak at a house in Ocean County in the past two
weeks, prompting authorities to caution residents about the dangers of leaks.
In this case, the victim, a 47-year-old man, awoke to the
smell of natural gas around 1:40 a.m., said Al Della Fave, spokesman for the
Ocean County Prosecutor's Office.
Della Fave said the entire house erupted into flames when
the man turned on the bathroom light.
When Point Pleasant Beach police and firefighters arrived,
the man was outside the house, alert and conscious, but had burns over 40
percent to 50 percent of his body, Della Fave said.
The victim was rushed to Jersey Shore University Medical
Center in Neptune, and then sent to Saint Barnabas Hospital's burn center in
Livingston, where he was listed in stable condition, Della Fave said.
New Jersey Natural Gas arrived on scene and shut off the
gas, Della Fave said.
The prosecutor's office's arson unit, the Ocean County Fire
Marshal and the Ocean County Sheriff's Department are investigating the source
and the cause of the leak leading to the explosion, Della Fave said.
On Feb. 23, an unoccupied house in Stafford Township
exploded when a leak in a natural gas main distribution line fed gas into the
basement utility room, authorities said. The house exploded when the gas came
into contact with an open flame, possibly a pilot light, authorities said.
NJNG offered the following advice regarding potential gas
leaks:
Because natural gas has no scent, a strong odorant that
smells like rotten eggs is added to help you detect possible leaks. If you
smell natural gas:
1.
Remove any cigarettes or other smoking materials
from the area, and then extinguish them
2.
Do NOT use matches, lighters or other open
flames or activate light switches, electrical appliances, flashlights,
doorbells or even garage door openers, as they could create a spark.
3.
Do NOT use telephones (cellular included) on the
premises where the leak is suspected. Phones can create a spark.
4.
Evacuate everyone from the building immediately
and then call NJNG from a safe location at 800-GAS-LEAK (800-427-5325). Let the
company know where you are.
5.
Do not re-enter the building until NJNG has
declared it to be safe.
Source: www.nj.com