3-Alarm Friday Fire Damages Several Apartments In South Brunswick

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ — A three-alarm fire on Friday evening damaged several apartments in the Dayton section of South Brunswick, the Monmouth Junction Fire Department (MJFD) said.

Around 5:30 p.m. on Friday evening police and the fire department were informed of a blaze at Princeton Orchards Apartments off Ridge Road. Police officers along with Monmouth Junction Fire Chief Scott Smith and Deputy Chief Sean Wert arrived to find smoke coming from Building E.

Firefighters encountered heavy fire conditions in Apartment E on the second floor in the center of the building, the fire department said. Due to the volume of fire and the need to search the other units in the building for victims and fire spread, the fire was upgraded to a third alarm.

Firefighters conducted an aggressive fire attack and were able to contain the fire to the single unit of the 12-unit building, according to Chief Smith.

“This was a challenging fire for firefighters. We had a large building with a rapidly spreading fire and a dozen apartments to search, plus humid weather that took a toll on the crews,” Smith said. “Three other apartments off the same common hallway as the fire apartment suffered smoke and water damage and were all deemed uninhabitable.”

A total of 12 fire trucks and over 60 firefighters responded, including firefighters from Monmouth Junction, Kendall Park, Kingston, Jamesburg, Plainsboro, North Brunswick Co. 2, Monroe Fire District 3, and Brookview. Firefighters from East Brunswick District 1, Monroe Fire Co. 1, Montgomery Fire Co. 2, and Little Rocky Hill covered South Brunswick fire stations during the fire and responded to two other incidents, including a truck fire on Route 522, according to the fire department.

Also present on the scene were ambulances from South Brunswick, North Brunswick, and Monroe. One resident and one firefighter were treated at the scene for heat exhaustion, the MJFD said.

The fire is under investigation by the South Brunswick Township Fire Safety Bureau.

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