MANCHESTER – Township Police responded to a home engulfed in flames on Friday morning.
The officers arrived at 9:33 a.m. to 3628 Ridgeway Road, where they observed heavy smoke emanating from the residence’s roof. They immediately confirmed that the residents of the household were not inside, but that several family pets were.
Firefighters from the Manchester, Ridgeway, Whiting, Lakehurst and Toms River fire departments as well as firefighters from the Joint Base Fire Department Station 67 responded to the scene and extinguished the fire.
Firefighters gained entrance to the house once the fire was extinguished, and learned that two frogs, and an iguana, which were inside the residence, perished in the fire.
The family’s cat and two tortoises which were also inside the residence were rescued. The cat was administered oxygen at the scene by members of the Joint Base Fire Department Station 67, and then transported to a veterinarian for treatment by the owner. EMT’s from Quality Medical Transport also responded. There were no injuries reported at the scene.
Once the scene was secure and deemed safe, the Township Building Inspector determined that the dwelling was uninhabitable and the family was relocated.
The cause of the fire was deemed accidental and investigators were unable to rule out the failure of electronically charged cooking appliances in the kitchen area.
Members of the Ocean County Fire Marshall’s Office are investigating the incident along with Manchester Police Detective Adam Emmons.
