Carteret Police Honored For Saving Lives In Bristol Station Fire

CARTERET, NJ — This week, the New Jersey Attorney General gave out the 2021 awards for Excellence in Policing.

And nine Carteret police officers were honored for their bravery in response to the July 23 Bristol Station apartment complex fire, a massive and incredibly fast-moving apartment fire.

The nine officers are: Lt. John Kelly, Detective Louis Maldonado, Detective Raul Martinez, Detective Anthony Ramos, Detective Eric Guzman, Detective Justin Craig, Officer Michael Kelly, Officer Javier Borrero and Officer Derrick Clavijo.

The Bristol Station apartment complex in Carteret caught fire on the afternoon of July 23. The building where the fire started, Building #4, became engulfed in flames within minutes and was completely burned to the ground. Hundreds of tenants were left homeless.

Nobody died in the fire, but pets — trapped inside individual units — perished in the flames. Some people were also injured as they fled the burning apartment complex.

That day, these nine Carteret police officers ran into the burning apartment building, without a moment's hesitation and safely evacuated everyone who was still trapped inside. When there were concerns the fire was then going to spread to Building #6, the police officers ran and evacuated people from there.

The officers were led by Det. Kelly, a 12-year veteran of the force, who recounted the day in a video accepting the award on behalf of his team.

“It was a typical day and a call came over the radio for a structure fire at Bristol Station,” said Det. Lt. Kelly. “As everyone else started arriving, we teamed up and started to clear the building. We started on the fourth floor and the fire was already up to the roof."

"(The fire) got into the attic and we didn’t realize that until afterwards. The smoke started getting thicker and we ran through the building coughing and going door-to-door," he continued. "Within 2-3 minutes after we exited the building, the fourth floor collapsed all the way to the first floor. There was 48 apartments in the building and 75 people evacuated. It’s an honor to be a lieutenant in that situation and being able to tell a group of guys that this is what we have to do and no one second guessed it."

Here is a video of Kelly talking about the day the fire call came in:

"Everyone went in and worked as a team. It’s those guys – the guys that do the work that make us as supervisors proud. We don’t go out and do it seeking awards or for everyone to say thank you. We just go and do it because it’s a job and we love to do it, so it’s a great honor to receive an award like this.”

“Our officers selflessly ran into the burning building without thinking twice to save the endangered residents,” said Carteret Police Chief Dennis McFadden. “Without their brave actions, we may have been looking at a mass casualty situation, but thankfully all occupants exited quickly and safely.”

The officers were given the Detective Joseph Seals Valor Award, which honors a police officer or officers who demonstrated an act of extraordinary bravery or heroism in the line of duty.

The award honors Detective Joseph Seals, a 13-year veteran of the Jersey City Police Department, who was shot to death in a wild Jersey City shoot-out and standoff in December 2019. He left behind a wife and two young children.

Detective Seals was not a stranger to heroism; in 2008, he broke through a window and stopped the rape of a 41-year-old woman on Christmas Eve.

Initial Patch report: Large Carteret Apartment Complex Fire Underway (July 23)

6 Killed In Jersey City Shooting Standoff; Police Officer Dies (Dec. 2019)

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