Fire leaves nine homeless

BY CHRISTINE VARNO
Staff Writer

LONG BRANCH — The cause of a house fire that occurred Friday morning and displaced nine residents is under investigation by the city Fire Bureau.

On Oct. 14 at approximately 5:30 a.m., the Long Branch Police Department received a report of a structure fire at a residence on Sixth Avenue, according to police reports.

Upon arrival, police and fire units observed flames and smoke from the second floor of the two-story building, according to Detective Lt.

Bruce Johantgen, who said officers

evacuated five occupants from the

first-floor apartment.

He added that the second-floor apartment was vacant at the time of the fire.

After 40 minutes, 30 firefighters from the Long Branch and Monmouth Beach fire departments brought the fire under control, and within two hours the blaze was extinguished.

According to Johantgen, approximately nine people were displaced due to the fire and the five occupants of the first-floor apartment were assisted by the Monmouth County Chapter of the American Red Cross.

The Monmouth County Fire Marshal’s Office is assisting the Long Branch Fire Bureau in the investigation.