I saw earlier tonight that the russians had put a bunch of charred debris and furniture to the curb. Is that a proper way to dispose of that stuff? Seems to me that it should be considered toxic waste.

Fire displaces family from 5-story Downtown apartment building

Monday, March 22, 2010
By CHARLES HACK
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

A one-alarm fire at a five-story building in Downtown Jersey City displaced a family and damaged two apartments yesterday, officials said.

Firefighters arrived at 233 8th St. at 12:08 p.m. and put out the blaze, which started in the bedroom of an unoccupied first floor apartment, by 12:45 p.m., Fire Director Armando Roman said.

The fire caused heavy damage to the first floor apartment and the unit above it, Roman said.

Three families in the building were allowed to return by yesterday afternoon. But the occupants of the second floor apartment above where the fire started weren't allowed back in, Roman said.

Roman said the building owner told fire officials the fire started as he was cutting plywood using a table saw. The table saw was plugged into an extension cord with a surge protector that was lying on a bed, which caught fire. After initially trying to put out the blaze, the owner called 911, Roman said.

When the firefighters arrived, Roman said, "the fire was coming like a torch out through the windows."

"People sometimes try to put out a fire on their own. By the time they find they can't it is out of control," he added. The property owner could not be reached to comment.

"Even though you live right next door, you hardly have the first clue about those tenants personally. They would hardly be considered yuppies by any normal standard. "

THANK YOU!
I'm one of the tenants of 233 8th Street, and you'd really have to have an overactive imagination to consider me, or anyone who lives in the building, a yuppie. And even if we were yuppies or or yippies or hippies or any other type of people you don't like, does this mean it's okay to make a nasty comment about us, after we'd just had our house catch on fire? What on earth is wrong with you?

NB: My father was a volunteer firefighter and my step-father is a volunteer firefighter, and I would hardly be the one calling for any reduction in a firefighter's pay.

I really find it shameful that some people would use their neighbors' misfortune in this way.

I'm thankful that the neighbors -- strangers and friends alike -- who came to check on us today were kinder than some of the people who are posting to this list. What would you like people saying about YOU should you be on the receiving end of some misfortune such as this?

There was nothing wrong with the fire escape. I know this because I came down it myself when my house caught fire today.

Shame on you for spreading such nonsense.

My neighbor had a hard time coming down the fire escape because he was trying to carry his two dogs, who were terrified and squirming. We helped him the best we could, along with two kind neighbors who also helped. His difficulty had nothing to do with the condition of the fire escape, which was in working order.

If you have problems with the owner of the building, that's for you to work out, but spreading misinformation about an unfortunate event is rather pathetic.

Surely a 2006 purchase puts me firmly in the yuppie camp on the yuppie vs old timer scale.

Robin.

Quote:

Your closing date on that property was June 29, 2006 ---- which is not so recent. You can come down off your noble cross.

Yeah, I read that comment on NJ.com. That's pretty nasty. Noone deserves to have their home destroyed. :(

And fireman definitely DO NOT make ENOUGH money.

I linked to the comment as I found it amusing, and thought it would stimulate conversation.

I don't agree with the sentiment, it would be strange for me to do so given that I recently purchased the house next door, and am presumably therefore precisely the kind of yuppie against which it is directed!

Robin.

Yes, I had already linked the article from your original post, and I clearly saw that it was a quote therein.

The fact is that if you didn't agree with the sarcastic sentiment, then you wouldn't have made the post that you did.

You're an idiot.

"I'll bet those yuppies aren't saying Firemen make too much money now"!

It wasn't me saying that, it was a quote from the comments section of the Jersey Journal article. That's why I put it in quotation marks with a link to the source article just above it.

Robin.

I saw this from a far today well at least the yellow tape and fire trucks. Is the Basic Coffee Shop still operating ? I bet Vlad and his boys are getting rid of what ever evidence that would cry liability. And what about that fire escape ? I hope everything is noted so the insurance company can justify their rates. Someone should find out who their insurance company is to make sure the building is up to par.

Quote:

Even though you live right next door, you hardly have the first clue about those tenants personally. They would hardly be considered yuppies by any normal standard.

Crazy Vlad and his substandard accommodations (and his well documented substandard practices) hardly attracts the yuppies for which so many of you seem to have such vitriol.

http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... y_firefighters_battl.html

"I'll bet those yuppies aren't saying Firemen make too much money now"!

Robin.

We heard the sirens at 12:15pm and saw 8th was blocked off. Thank God no one got hurt!

I had heard that a power strip or an over-burdened extension cord had been laid across a mattress while someone was working with power tools or something. It then ignited the mattress. The russians are there now pulling debris out. The ground floor looks almost completely burned. Can't tell too much about the upper floors although they look okay. Gonna be stinky there for awhile.

Quote:

Did the fireman say if they thought it was caused by a tenant smoking in bed on the floor above the storefront? ...or was this in the storefront?

I' at 235 8th Street next door, just got let back in, a huge amount of property damage to Vlad's building, but no injuries and everyone and their pets got out safe.

Robin.

Thanks for the update, jcnight ... and thank goodness everyone, including the dogs, got out ok!

Yes everyone is okay and got out. Very scarey. I asked a firefighter what happened and he said they thought it may have been a mattress that caught fire on the first floor.


The jerk landlord was out there watching. I also know that the people that live on the third floor have 2 dogs, and the fire escape was in such bad shape that he could hardly get down alone. Thank God someone was there to help him with his two dogs.

What a shame that Vlad gets away with so much crap in this neighborhood.
I am glad that everyone is okay

There was a fire in the building next to Basic on 8th Street ... anyone know if all people & pets got out ok?