Federici's Fire Causes Smoke, Water Damage: Freehold Fire Dept.

FREEHOLD, NJ — (Updated, 6:30 p.m.) A fire in the wall at Federici's Family Restaurant in downtown Freehold Wednesday afternoon caused some smoke and water damage to the restaurant but no injuries, fire officials said.

Employees and patrons of the iconic Italian restaurant on East Main Street and its next-door neighbor, the Court Jester, called 911 to report smoke inside both restaurants at about 3:45 p.m. Wednesday, the Freehold Fire Department said in a Facebook post.

Initial responding police and firefighters confirmed the smoke and located the fire in the wall of Federici's, which runs parallel to the Court Jester, the post said. The fire was extinguished shortly thereafter, the fire company said.

Word of the fire spread rapidly across social media, with dozens of people posting comments about the restaurant and expressing their hopes that damage was limited.

Federici's incurred smoke and water damage to the front of the building where the fire was located, and the Court Jester incurred minor smoke damage. The fire company said everyone in the two restaurants evacuated safely and there were no injuries reported.

The owners of Federici's posted a note thanking patrons and the first responders late Wednesday evening: "Thank you to everyone for your support, everyone is safe. We would like to thank the Freehold firefighters, Police and EMS for all your brave work! We wFreehold Fire Department (Station 15) East Freehold Fire CompanyFreehold Borough Police Department Freehold Fire, Police, and EMS News"

"Thank you to our mutual aid companies: the East Freehold Fire Company, the Freehold Township Independent Fire Company, and the Adelphia Fire Company," the post said.

Firefighters remain on scene as the Freehold Police Department and Monmouth County Fire Marshal investigate.

Downtown Freehold was closed between Court Street and Center Street for several hours, fire officials said.

Main photo by Michael Colarusso, Monmouth County Public Information Department, County Photographer; secondary photos by Lisa Russo; all published with permission