Woman Drops Baby from Balcony, Then Jumps to Escape North Brunswick Fire

A young mother and her baby were trapped on a balcony Tuesday morning while a three-alarm fire raged around them, leaving the woman with no choice: She dropped her baby off a second-story balcony into the hands of a police officer, and then she herself jumped.

The fire broke out at approximately 8:13 a.m. Tuesday at an apartment complex at 114 Willowbrook Drive in North Brunswick. Multiple units were on fire within Building 19 of the complex.

North Brunswick Police Officer Nate Nicholson found the woman stranded on a balcony in one of the units, holding her baby and screaming for help. Officer Nicholson convinced the woman to drop the baby to him, and he caught the child safely.

The mother then jumped to him as well. Both mother and child were transported to the hospital as a precautionary measure, according to Janice Larkin, assistant to North Brunswick Mayor Francis Womack.

Officer Nicholson, a 12-year veteran of the department, declined to give media interviews on his heroic rescue.

”He feels it is just his job, nothing special,” another New Brunswick police officer told Patch.

The all-volunteer North Brunswick Fire Department battled the three-alarm blaze for several hours, and were able to keep the fire damage to Building 19.

A roof collapsed in the fire, briefly trapping two firefighters, but they were not injured.

No other residents were injured, but two firefighters were treated for minor injuries after they were struck by falling roof debris. New Brunswick, Milltown, Brookview (East Brunswick), and Franklin Park fire departments all responded to help put out the blaze, as well as the Milltown First Aid Squad.

The building sustained heavy damage, and all eight units within the structure have been found to be uninhabitable. Eight families — 21 people in all — have been left homeless by the blaze. The American Red Cross is providing temporary lodging, food, clothing, and infant supplies for them.

The fire was out by 11 a.m., but several emergency service units are still on the scene.

The cause of the fire is being investigated by the North Brunswick Fire Marshal’s Office, assisted by North Brunswick Police Detectives.

Photos used with permission from the North Brunswick Police Department Facebook page.