A fire over the weekend at a building on Joe Parker Road in Lakewood has been ruled accidental, authorities said Sunday, with the status of a man trapped inside as well as an injured police officer both having had positive outcomes. Scenes from the fire were captured by the Jersey Shore Fire Response channel on YouTube, which is shown above.
The fire, at 419 Joe Parker Road, was reported at 1:20 a.m. Saturday, the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement. Upon arrival, emergency personnel observed heavy fire coming from the front and back of the structure, the statement said. Occupants of the residence informed emergency personnel that a male occupant remained unaccounted for. The missing male occupant was located in the structure and rescued by an officer from the Lakewood Township Police Department. The victim was transported to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune for treatment of his injuries; he is listed in critical but stable condition.
The officer who heroically rescued the man was transported to Monmouth Medical Center-Southern Campus in Lakewood, where he was treated for smoke inhalation and released. During the suppression of the fire, another firefighter suffered a cardiac event; that firefighter was transported to Ocean University Medical Center in Brick Township, where he was treated and released.
A joint investigation by police, prosecutors and the Ocean County Fire Marshall’s office determined that the fire originated underneath a screened-in deck attached to the structure, and that the cause of the fire was accidental due to “discarded smoking material.”
