Don't Be Careless With Smoking Materials, Ocean Prosecutor Urges After Fatal House Fires

TOMS RIVER, NJ — In the wake of a house fire that killed four members of a Lacey Township family — the sixth fatal fire in Ocean County in 2023 — Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer is urging people to make an extra effort to properly extinguish cigarettes.

Billhimer issued a statement Thursday afternoon, urging care and saying improperly discarded smoking materials have been cited as the cause in multiple structure fires. That includes Tuesday's fire that killed four members of the Wright family, including a 14-year-old girl and a 4-month-old baby. Read more: ID's Of 4 Killed In Jersey Shore Fire, Including Baby, Teen Released

" 'Fatal, tragic, and heartbreaking.' We use these words so often, I’m afraid they’ve begun to lose their meaning," Billhimer said. "These are not simply words on paper; they are the real-life consequences of routine behavior."

"Failure to properly put out a cigarette can have deadly consequences," he said. "Failure to properly extinguish any smoking material may set in motion a series of events that ends a life and causes the loss of your entire world."

Improperly discarded smoking materials have been cited as the cause in at least six residential fires this year including a massive structure fire at a Toms River apartment complex on July 15 that displaced more than 20 families. Read more: Families Trying To Pick Up The Pieces After Toms River Fire

While the Toms River fire did not result in the loss of life, there were at least four from February through May that did result in deaths. A Feb. 16 mobile home fire killed a Toms River man. A March 6 fire killed a Little Egg Harbor man. On March 19 a fire killed a woman and injured a second woman in Cedar Glen West in Manchester, and a May 10 fire in Holiday City killed a man.

A March 6 fire in Toms River that burned a man also was caused by a cigarette that caught a mattress on fire, authorities have said.

A fatal fire in Berkeley Township on July 20 that killed a woman was attributed to a faulty dishwasher, Billhimer has said, and the cause of a Lakewood house fire that displaced a family of seven has not been released.

"We have seen mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, sons, daughters, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends die in harrowing fire-related incidents," Billhimer said. "These catastrophic and life-changing losses are wholly preventable."

Billhimer urged smokers to heed the following safety tips. In addition, he urged hoarders to get rid of clutter that can increase fire risk and make it more difficult and dangerous for firefighters and first responders to battle.

Regarding cigarettes:

The place where we feel safest - at home - is where most smoking-material structure fires, deaths, and injuries occur. Smoking materials are the leading cause of fire-related deaths. Smoking material fires are preventable.

If you smoke, use only fire-safe cigarettes. If you smoke, smoke outside. Most deaths result from fires that started in living rooms, family rooms, dens, or in bedrooms.

Store cigarettes, lighters, matches, and other smoking materials up high — out of the reach of children — in a locked cabinet.

Put it out! Use a deep, sturdy ashtray. Place it away from anything that can burn.

Do not discard cigarettes in vegetation such as mulch, potted plants or landscaping, peat moss, dried grasses, leaves, or other materials that could ignite easily.

Before you throw away cigarette butts and ashes, make sure they are out completely; dousing in water or sand is the best way to do that.

Never smoke and never allow anyone to smoke where medical oxygen is used. Medical oxygen can cause materials to ignite more easily and make fires burn at a faster rate than normal. It can make an existing fire burn faster and hotter.

Regarding hoarding:

Cooking is unsafe if flammable items are in close proximity to the stove or oven.

Heating units may be too close to things that might burn. They might also be placed on unstable surfaces. If a heater tips over into a pile, it can cause a fire.

Electrical wiring may be old or worn from the weight of piles. Pests could chew on wires. Damaged wires can start fires.

Open flames from smoking materials or candles in a home with excess clutter are very dangerous.

Blocked pathways and exits may hinder escape from a fire. Hoarding impacts first responders’ ability to perform their tasks and puts them in harm’s way. Firefighters cannot move swiftly through a home filled with clutter. First responders can be trapped in a home when exits are blocked. They can be injured by objects falling from piles.

The weight of stored items — especially if water is added to put out a fire — can lead to building collapse.

Fighting fires is very risky in a hoarding home. It is very difficult to enter a home that is cluttered in order to provide medical care; clutter impedes the search and rescue of both humans and pets.

"Most fires are totally preventable," Billhimer said. "Life is precious; please keep these safety tips in mind, and above all — please be careful."