Terrible... if there was work done in recent years, I bet it was an unlicensed electrician or underpaid handyman. Thankfully everyone is safe.

Bad wiring is blamed for Sunday fire in Jersey City buildings

By Michaelangelo Conte/The Jersey Journal

The three-alarm fire that left several families homeless after ripping through four Jersey City Heights buildings this weekend has been deemed accidental and was likely started by electrical wires, officials said.

Arson investigators have determined the blaze that engulfed 126, 128, 130, and 132 Beacon Ave. early Sunday was caused by faulty wiring between the second and third floors of 130 Beacon, Fire Department Director Armando Roman said yesterday.

A gas line in one of the buildings ruptured during the blaze, helping to feed the flames, Roman said, adding that the fire was able to spread through the common cockloft of the buildings.

Firefighters responded to the 12:38 a.m. alarm in the ice and snow and the fire was not deemed under control until 8 a.m., Roman said, adding that the conditions made it one of the toughest fires the department has fought this year.

Several families living in the three-story apartment buildings were left homeless by the blaze, Roman said. One resident suffering from asthma was taken to the Jersey city Medical Center, as were two firefighters who suffered minor injuries.
The American Red Cross of Northern New Jersey put up five families -- a total of 20 people -- at local motels. The other families are staying with relatives or friends.

City officials said 128, 130, and 132 Beacon Ave. will have to be torn down.

Jersey City fire in Heights engulfs four houses, displaces several families, officials say

By Ken Thorbourne/The Jersey Journal
December 20, 2009, 2:07PM

Jersey City blaze on Beacon Avenue in Heights engulfed five buildings and has displaced several families.

Several families have been displaced by a nearly four-alarm fire in Jersey City this morning that engulfed four buildings along Beacon Avenue in the Heights section of the city, officials say.

Fire officials are calling the blaze the stiffest challenge they have faced all year due to the snow and sub-freezing temperatures they had to operate in.

The fire, which was called in at 12:38 a.m. at 130 Beacon Avenue, eventually spread to involve four houses, 126, 128, 130, and 132 Beacon Ave., Fire Director Armando Roman said. Three of the buildings are in such bad condition -- 128, 130, and 132 -- they will have to be torn down, Roman said.

Fire companies are still at the scene checking for spot fires her and there, Roman said. The blaze wasn't declared under control until 8 a.m.

Several of the fire victims were back at the fire scene this morning, chipping ice to gain access to their apartments and recover some belongings.

beacon avenue residents.JPGJoe Shine photoBeacon Avenue fire victims returned this morning to salvage some belongings
One resident was transported to the Jersey City Medical Center as a result of the fire. She is an asthmatic patient, Roman said.

Two firefighters suffered minor injuries and were treated at the Medical Center and released, he said.

Many of these displaced families had to be temporarily sheltered at School 6 on St. Paul's Avenue.

Five families -- a total of 20 people -- were taken in by the American Red Cross. The other families are staying with relatives or friends, Roman said.

The fire -- which forced the department to call in additional units even after it was bumped up to three alarms -- was the most difficult for Jersey City firefighters to handle all year due to the snow and sub-freezing temperatures, Roman said.

"Without a doubt this was one of the biggest ones (fires this year) and without a doubt one of the most difficult to fight because of the inclement weather," Roman said.

"It (snow, cold and ice) slows your firefighting capabilities down. It makes for slow movement," he said. "Just walking in that kind of weather without having to perform a firefighting task is difficult. And everything starts freezing up. Any residual water turns to ice."

The cause of the blaze is under investigation. Arson investigators are on the scene.