Homeowner Thwarts House Fire With Garden Hose, Cops Say

No one was injured and a quick-thinking homeowner was able to contain a fire before first responders arrived overnight at a Morris Township home in response to an outside fire, police said.

Morris Township Police and Fire Departments responded to 42 Bradwahl Drive at 2:45 a.m. for a report of a fire, police said, after the homeowner was awakened by a “crackling noise.”

The homeowner then went outside and discovered the fire beginning to grow in the backyard, police said. The homeowner began using a garden hose to contain the fire until the fire department arrived, which stopped the blaze before it spread into the home, police said.

The exterior siding and window on the rear of the home was damaged by the fire as well as plastic patio chairs and a patio prep station, police said.

A preliminary investigation has revealed the fire may have resulted from an unattended citronella candle, police said.

Morris Township Police, Morris Township Fire Department, Madison Fire Department Rapid Intervention Team, and the Morris Minute Men all responded to the scene.

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