2 'Critical', Severely Burned In Toms River House Fire: Authorities

Updated, 2:45 p.m. Monday

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Two people were critically injured in a fire at home in Holiday City at Silverton on Sunday evening, one of two unrelated fires in the age-restricted community.

The two people — a man and a woman — were found in the home on Mount Everest Lane by firefighters who searched the home when they arrived following the report of structure fire, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said Monday. They were unconscious and had suffered severe burns, said Jillian Messina, media relations specialist for the Toms River Police Department.

The two were flown to the Burn Center at Cooper Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, where they were listed in critical condition on Monday, Billhimer said.

Three firefighters and a police officer suffered minor injuries while fighting the fire, which was reported at 9:45 p.m., Messina said. All were treated at the scene.

John Novak, chief fire inspector for the Toms River Bureau of Fire Prevention, said firefighters from the Silverton Volunteer Fire Company quickly extinguished the fire at the home.

Messina said the second fire was discovered by a Toms River police officer.

As Officer James Manolio was leaving the Mount Everest Lane fire he saw heavy smoke, circled the neighborhood and saw a fire on Mount Juliano Lane, Messina said. At the same time, about 2:45 a.m., a 911 call reported the second fire.

When police arrived they found the people who lived there were outside and safe, she said.

Surrounding homes were evacuated as a precaution because of strong winds that were threatening to spread the flames, Messina said.

Firefighters were able to quickly knock the fire down and extinguished it without it spreading significantly; the exterior of a neighboring home sustained some damage, and three vehicles in the homeowner’s driveway were destroyed in the fire, she said.

Firefighters from the Silverton Volunteer Fire Company, Pleasant Plains Fire Company and East Dover Fire Company responded, Novak said.

The origin and cause of the Mount Everest Lane fire are currently under investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Arson Unit, Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, Toms River Township Police Department Detective Bureau, and Toms River Township Bureau of Fire Prevention.

The Mount Juliano Lane fire was not believed to be suspicious and was not believed to be connected to the Mount Everest Lane fire, Novak said.

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