Blaze at County Garage Knocked Down by Local Firefighters

A Toms River police officer doused an electrical fire at a county vehicle maintenance garage with a fire extinguisher before local firefighters arrived to knock down the still-burning blaze.

The fire, traced back to a generator unit, broke out in the Chestnut Street garage just after 7:50 a.m. Friday. The fire had spread to an area in between a ceiling and a corrugated metal roof as firefighters arrived at the scene.

Chief John Lightbody of Toms River Fire District 1 said the fire occurred in a separate building adjacent to the main garage.

As firefighters arrived, a general alarm which activated all of the township's main fire companies – districts one and two, including Silverton, East Dover and Pleasant Plains – was called, Lightbody said.

Firefighters cooled the area from the beneath the ceiling and eventually cut a hole in the roof, enabling them to fight the fire from above.

"One of the primary objectives was to stop the spread of fire into the main structure, which was successful," said Lightbody.

It took firefighters between 20 and 30 minutes to extinguish the fire, after which they remained on scene to douse remaining hot spots, Lightbody said.