Morris Ave. Fire Update

The residents of 236 Morris Ave. are back at home. The mixed use building was cleared following the fire that broke out in a third floor apartment on Tuesday, Feb. 9.

Several occupants of the building were put up at the Holiday Inn by the Colonial Crossroads Chapter of the Red Cross. A resident of the building told Patch they were cleared return to their homes by the fire department.

The resident, who was happy to return home, said that aside from a smell from the fire, their apartment was not noticeably damaged.

In addition, the fire department sent Patch a press release about the fire. The release is below.

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On Tuesday, February 9, 2010 at 1:18 p.m. the Springfield Fire Department responded to a report of a flames coming from a building at 236 Morris Avenue.  First arriving units found a three story wood frame building, residential over commercial occupancy with fire showing from a third floor window. The tenants were evacuated by the Springfield Police Department; however, there was a report of two possible occupants trapped.

 A General Alarm was transmitted with a special request for a Millburn Engine Company to respond to the scene. Springfield Engine 1 crew secured a water supply, stretched 1.75" handline to the third floor, forced entry into the third floor apartment and began a primary search. The primary search was negative and Engine 1 began fire suppression.

A second alarm was transmitted, bringing a Union and Westfield Engine Companies to the scene. The fire was placed under control in 27 minutes without injuries. Fire damage was contained to the third floor apartment with minor water damage to the second and first floor.

 The Springfield Fire Department determined the fire to be suspicious. The Springfield Police Department took the role as the lead agency in the criminal investigation. Union County Fire Investigation Task Force, Union County Sheriff's Crime Scene Unit and NJ Division of Fire Safety K-9 Arson Unit were requested to the scene to conduct origin and cause investigation.  

The entire building was required to be evacuated due to damage associated to the structure and its fire alarm. The Westfield Regional Health Department inspected the two eating establishments and they will re-open after re-inspection. The Springfield Office of Emergency Management and Red Cross assisted with the relocation of 10 residents from the 8 apartments.