Four Residents Displaced in Two Separate Fires Over Weekend

Four Galloway Township residents were displaced due to two separate fires during the weekend, according to Chief Rob Garbutt on Monday.

The first fire occured on the 600 block of Biscayne Avenue at 12:49 p.m. on Friday, when an occupant awoke to find smoke in the house, Garbutt said. The Oceanville and Bayview Fire companies and the Absecon Fire Department were called the fight the blaze, which was discovered inside a wall of the house, according to Garbutt.

25 firefighters responded to the call and no injuries were reported, but the house was not habitable, Garbutt said.

The second fire occured at 19 Colonial Court at 2:25 a.m., after an occupant who was doing laundry heard the smoke detector go off and saw smoke in the residence, Garbutt said.

After finding a fire in the utility room, the resident called 9-1-1 and left the building. Colonial Court is a 24-unit multi-family building, so when the arrived, they began evacuating the other residences, but the first was contained to only 19 Colonial Court by 35 firefighters from the Bayview and Oceanville Fire Companies, Garbutt said.

The occupants of 19 Colonial Court will be staying with relatives because of the extensive damage to the housing unit, but other residents were able to return to their homes that night and no injuries were reported, said Garbutt.

The Galloway Township Ambulance Squad was also on hand at both incidents, providing water for firefighters and standing by in the case of injuries, Garbutt said.

The Galloway Township Fire Investigation Unit is investigating both fires.