Neighbor Saves Sleeping Family From House Fire In South Brunswick

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ – An 85-year-old South Brunswick resident saved his neighbor’s family when a fire broke out in their house early on Wednesday morning, the police department said.

Around 5:35 a.m. on Wednesday, police received a 911 call about a house on fire at 73 Kingsley Road. On arrival, officers found a working structure fire in the area of the garage. At the time the house had been evacuated and there were no pets inside, police said.

The family told firefighters that they were sleeping and had no idea the house was on fire when they heard banging on their front door and bedroom windows. On checking, they found their neighbor, Santo Livio, along with another unidentified woman warning them of the fire, police said. The family was able to quickly evacuate the house without injuries.

Livio, 85, of Kingsley Road, said he was always an early riser. When he woke up at 5:30 a.m. and looked out his front door, he saw puffs of smoke that looked like fog over the garage corner of 73 Kingsley Road.

Unsure if he was seeing smoke or fog, Livio stepped outside, at which point he saw a woman walking down the street. He asked her if it appeared to be smoke, and when she said yes, they both ran to the house and began trying to alert the residents by banging on the door and windows.

Livio then called 911 as the residents left the house, and the unknown woman left the scene in the commotion of the fire response, police said.

“I credit Mr. Livio, along with the unidentified woman, and their quick thinking and heroic actions, with saving the family,” Police Chief Raymond J. Hayducka said.

The Kendall Park Fire Department began attacking the fire immediately upon arrival. It took 50 firefighters from all three township fire departments - Kendall Park Fire Department, Monmouth Junction Fire Department, and Kingston Fire Department - 20 minutes to extinguish the fire.

The fire appears to have begun in the garage, but a source and confirmation of the point of origin are pending further investigation by the Fire Safety Bureau, police said.

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