Elderly Barnegat Woman Badly Burned In Kitchen Accident

Editor’s note: At the family’s request, the victim’s name has been removed from this article.

by Patricia A. Miller

An elderly Barnegat woman suffered severe burns Tuesday morning when her clothing caught fire while she was making pancakes and tea at her stove, a spokesman for the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office said.

The 83-year-old, was transferred to the Temple Burn Center in Philadelphia, due to the extent of her injuries, said spokesman Al Della Fave.

Barnegat police and fire department members responded to a Fish Pond Terrace home in the Mirage retirement community at 10:27 a.m. on a report of a severe burn victim. They found the woman was severely burned, he said.

She was first taken to the Atlantic City Trauma Center, but was later taken to the Philadelphia burn center because of the extent of her injuries.

A preliminary investigation determined that her sweater and pants somehow ignited while she was at the stove, he said.

The woman managed to phone her daughter, who works around the corner from the home. The daughter found her mother on the kitchen floor, rendered first aid and called 911, Della Fave said.

People should use caution when they are around open kitchen flames and wearing clothing made of synthetic materials, he said.

If clothing does ignite, try to stay calm and head for the kitchen sink, Della Fave said.

“Synthetic material will catch fire very quickly,” he said.

The incident is under investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, Ocean County Sheriff’s Department CSI, Ocean County Fire Marshall, and Barnegat police and fire departments. There is no further information on her condition at this time, he said.