Oil Left Cooking On Stove Cited In Toms River Apartment Fire

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Oil left cooking unattended in a pan on a stove caught fire Thursday night, causing a fire that damaged ruined two apartments and damaged others, fire officials said Friday.

The fire at Jamestowne Village on James Street left 14 people to find shelter elsewhere, the Asbury Park Press reported.

Kevin Esposito, chief fire inspector with the Toms River Bureau of Fire Prevention, said the fire in Building 22 at the complex started in Apartment 5. A resident of that apartment suffered second-degree burns on their hand but there were no other injuries, Esposito said.

Firefighters from Toms River Fire Companies 1 and 2, under the command of Chief Mike Muttie, responded to the fire that was reported about 10 p.m. Those companies, with assistance from Pleasant Plains Fire Company, Silverton Fire Company, East Dover Fire Company, Island Heights Fire Company, Bayville Fire Company and the RIT Team, extinguished the fire within a couple of hours, Esposito said.

Toms River Fire Inspector Kevin Britton, Toms River Police Detective Travis Seaman and Detective Chris Bonner of the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office determined the origin of the fire was in the kitchen on top of the stove.

The first floor apartment where the fire started sustained heavy fire damage along with smoke and water damage. The second-floor apartment received minor fire damage but heavy smoke and water damage.

Britton deemed the building unsafe for occupancy, Esposito said.

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