In one of Jersey City's biggest fires in years, 10 buildings went up in flames

[MCA™]

Jersey City families who lost homes in Easter Sunday fire to get money raised through fundraiser
Published: Friday, May 11, 2012, 7:54 PM
Updated: Friday, May 11, 2012, 7:54 PM
Michaelangelo Conte/The Jersey Journal

Each of the 20 families left homeless by the Easter Sunday fire that ripped through 10 Jersey City buildings will receive a $550 check Monday thanks to a fund-raiser organized by Fire Director Armando Roman and Mayor Jerramiah Healy.

"This particular fire was historically devastating given that it was such a large loss of property and the families lost almost everything," Roman said Friday of the six-alarm blaze that left 75 Claremont Avenue people homeless. "It was Easter morning and a day when they would have been celebrating with their families."

About 200 people attended the April 19 fund-raiser at the Moose Lodge on Westside Avenue and although the price at the door was $25, some opted to pay more. Others mailed in checks, bringing the total raised to about $11,000, Roman said.

Roman said victims of the fire are invited to pick up their checks at 1 p.m. Monday at fire headquarters on Marin Boulevard.

The director said there was also a great outpouring of support from area businesses that donated food and other items for the fund-raiser.

"We are so grateful and I'm sure the families are so grateful for the people who saw a need and came forward -- very heartwarming," Roman said.

Businesses that contributed included BJ's Wholesale, the Brownstone Diner, Carlo's Bakery, Carmine's Deli, Chicken Delight, Cisco, Daily Grind, Dunkin' Donuts, Jettro's, Lamp Post Tavern, Park Tavern, Poland Spring, Puccini's Restaurant, Shop-Rite, Vinnie's Pizzeria, Helen's Pizzeria, Wonder Bagel and the Moose Lodge.

There was so much food left over after the fund-raiser that those fire victims who attended the event were sent home with food.

[jcgov]

You're Invited! Benefit For The Claremont Avenue Fire Victims To Be Held 7pm-11pm, 4/19, Moose Lodge, 60 West Side Avenue

Download Flyer here and please post!

[MCA™]

Jersey City asking residents to donate gift cards to victims of Easter Sunday fire
Published: Thursday, April 12, 2012, 2:25 PM
Updated: Thursday, April 12, 2012, 2:27 PM
By Terrence T. McDonald/The Jersey Journal

Jersey City is asking resident who wish to donate to the victims of the Easter Sunday fire to give gift cards from local department stores, supermarkets or other retailers instead of clothing and other items.

City spokeswoman Jennifer Morrill said the city has seen “a tremendous outpouring” of support for the 75 people who lost their homes and possessions on Sunday. But as city workers go through the “vast amount” of clothes donated, the city requests that anyone who wishes to donate to give gift cards from here on, Morrill added.

“We thank the people of Jersey City for their compassion during this difficult time for the families,” she said.

Mayor Jerramiah Healy and Fire Director Armando Roman will host a fundraiser next week for the families displaced because of the fire, at the Moose Lodge, 60 West Side Avenue, on Thursday, April 19 from 7 to 11 p.m.

Donations are $25. Please make check/money order payable to “JC Fire Foundation’s Victims Fund,” and write in the note line, “For the victims of the Claremont Avenue fire.” For more information, call Roman’s office at (201) 547-4239.

[MCA™]

Drink & Donate - Claremont Avenue Fire Relief @LITM
Today, April 11 - 5:00pm until 1:00am
at LITM, 140 Newark Avenue

This past Easter Sunday, 52 people were left homeless by a tragic house fire, including 22 children who lost everything in the 6-alarm blaze.

We will be donating 10% of bar sales to the Mayor’s Action Bureau in an effort to assist those affected by this devastating event.

We will also have a donation box on hand, and encourage you to bring non-perishable food items, new and gently used clothing, toys, books, and school supplies.

“This is one of the worst fires our city has seen in recent years and we know there will be an outpouring from the community to support these families,” said Mayor Healy. “Our hearts go out to those affected by this tragic fire and we want them to know that their City is here to help and assist them in any way possible.”

For more information, please visit: http://bit.ly/IC9QPT

[jcgov]

The complete list of clothing needed, sorted by size, age, and gender, by victims of the Claremont Avenue fire is now available here.

School items, such as pens, notebooks, books, knapsacks and pencils are also needed, as well as books.

[MCA™]

Jersey City Mayor's Office guides effort to collect food, clothes for Sunday's fire homeless
Published: Tuesday, April 10, 2012, 3:02 AM
Charles Hack/The Jersey Journal

Easter Sunday’s six-alarm blaze displaced at least 52 Jersey City residents and stole most of their earthly possessions.

But the tragedy is not the end of the story, city officials said yesterday, as plans were put in place to collect food, clothes, and other items for the people who lost their homes.

“This is one of the worst fires our city has seen in recent years and we know there will be an outpouring from the community to support these families,” Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy said in a statement. “Our hearts go out to those affected by this tragic fire.”

Starting today, the Mayor’s Office is stationing collection boxes for the fire victims at six locations across the city, officials said.

Officials are seeking nonperishable food items, new and gently used clothing, toys, books, school supplies and other items for the stricken families.

The Mayor’s Office is also offering help finding housing for the fire victims, and is asking local business owners, especially in the retail industry, for food, clothing, and toy donations.

Inserra Supermarkets has pledged to donate gift certificates worth $250 to each family to use at Inserra ShopRites.

The Healy Charitable Foundation will be donating $250 to each family, and the Jersey City Redevelopment Agency’s One City Fund will contribute ShopRite gift cards to the families, officials said.

Donation boxes will be located at the following locations:

City Hall, 280 Grove St.; 1 Journal Square Plaza; Mary McCleod Bethune Community Center, 140 Martin Luther King Drive; Pershing Field Community Center, at 201 Central Ave; and Hamilton Square/Silverman Properties, at 232 Pavonia Ave.

The Soccer Learning Center has a drop-off point at the Community Education and Recreation Center Gym, 180 Ninth Street, which will operate Mondays 6:30 to 10 p.m., Tuesdays 3 to 6:30 p.m., Thursdays 3 to 6 p.m. and from 8 to 11 p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Also, The House of the Lord Church, 427 Martin Luther King Drive, will be collecting clothes for the fire victims starting at 10 a.m. today at the church. For more information, call (201) 763-7654.

Business owners interested in making donations should contact the Mayor’s Action Bureau at (201) 547-4597.

---

Residents salvage what they can after fire on Claremont Avenue in Jersey City
Published: Tuesday, April 10, 2012, 3:00 AM
Andrew Steadman/The Jersey Journal



Several residents displaced by Sunday’s six-alarm fire on Claremont Avenue in Jersey City returned to the scene of the inferno yesterday to salvage furniture and other personal belongings.

The fire, which started as an electrical fire at 349 Claremont Ave. between West Side Avenue and Halstead Street around 4:30 a.m., quickly spread through a common cockloft to nine other two-story rowhouses.

Although there were no injuries, the blaze displaced at least 52 people, more than 20 of them children, officials said.

Samuel Davis, who lived at 365 Claremont with his girlfriend, yesterday worked to fill a rented van with furniture, electronics and other items.

This was the first step toward rebuilding, moving everything worth saving out of the hollowed-out building, he said, adding most items would be placed in storage.

“We’re gathering all our stuff together. We were able to save a bunch of stuff,” Davis said, noting some of the most important recovered items were documents and other paperwork.

A few houses up the street, at 355 Claremont, Timothy Levine was also filling a moving van with furniture.

Despite the tremendous destruction of property, Levine said he was thankful there were no major injuries. He was also pleasantly surprised by the number of family possessions that survived the fire.

“I’m doing better now,” Levine said. “It’s a big difference from yesterday.”

As residents retrieved what they could, Mike Hoffman of Harbor View Restoration used a nail gun and plywood to board up windows and doors up and down the block, protecting the properties until insurance claims adjusters can survey the damage.

The fire started at 349 Claremont and eventually engulfed 10 properties, from 347 to 365 Claremont.

The fire was caused by a faulty electrical cord that was being used by teenagers to charge their cellphones, fire officials said. A spark set off the fire, which traveled up the building’s wall, and then into the common cockloft, an open space near the roof shared by all the properties.

The quick work of firefighters and a small alley between 347 Claremont and 345 Claremont prevented the latter from going up in flames, Fire Director Armando Roman said.

The blaze required a response of more than 100 firefighters, five of whom suffered minor injuries.

City building inspectors were still making decisions yesterday about which properties would have to be razed. By early afternoon, 347, 349 and 351 Claremont were identified as definites for demolition.

[propscene]

This is terrible.
We discovered our house had connecting attics when we gutted the second floor and removed the drop ceilings. It's pretty insane to think we lived here for years without knowing we could crawl across almost every neighbor's ceiling . We had no idea. And, of course the first thought was less issues with ceiling cat or insulating and more with the entire block going up in flames. Needless to say we've remedied this for our house but I feel sorry for all of our neighbors who are still hugely at risk. 

[MCA™]

In one of Jersey City's biggest fires in years, 10 buildings went up in flames, displacing 52 people
Published: Monday, April 09, 2012, 3:03 AM
Ken Thorbourne/The Jersey Journal

Six-alarm Easter morning fire burns ten homes in Jersey City gallery (75 photos)

In one of the biggest fires Jersey City has seen in decades, ten buildings along Claremont Avenue yesterday went up in flames, 52 people 22 of them children were displaced from their homes and five firefighters had to be taken to the hospital.

The families, many of them planning Easter Sunday get-togethers, lost virtually all their possessions.

The six-alarm blaze, which started at 349 Claremont Ave. near West Side Avenue, tore through 10 two-story frame homes on the south side of the street; and once the fire started traveling through a common cockloft, there was no stopping it.

“That’s a common void that all of the houses share ... there’s no stops,” Fire Director Armando Roman said yesterday morning.

“I can’t remember the last time we had something this big and this much loss ... what a devastating fire,” Roman said. “This is the kind of fire (where) you would expect many injuries and fatalities.”

The personal loss for residents was catastrophic, Roman said.

“In talking to many of the residents, they were just overwhelmingly devastated by the loss of their property their personal belongings, their history of family treasures,” Roman said. “They can’t get to go back into their homes Many were planning get-togethers for Easter Sunday.”

Firefighters were called to scene at 4:23 a.m. and arrived four minutes later.

Before it was declared under control at 7:29 a.m., every company in Jersey City responded to the fire, some 100 firefighters, along with three companies from Newark. Dozens of firefighters from other Hudson County fire departments were called in to staff the Jersey City fire stations, Roman said.

The blaze started in the basement of the 349 Claremont Ave. where some teenagers were charging their cellphones, according to the resident who notified the department, Roman said.

An extension cord sparked and started the fire, which ran up the wall, and into the cockloft, the fire director said. The fire consumed 349 Claremont and nine other homes.

Several firefighters took to the roofs of the buildings to try to put it out. But “the fire started traveling so fast that many firefighters were still on the roof and we had to put ladders up to allow them to escape,” Roman said.

Some firefighters on the second floor of the structures momentarily became trapped between fire beneath and above them.

Battling the fire, smoke, and low visibility, Battalion Chief Joseph Zieja was one of the last firefighters to come down from the roof and was overcome by smoke, Roman said.

Four other firefighters sustained injuries and were taken to the Jersey City Medical Center.

Firefighter Michael Quiles of Engine Co. 8 suffered an eye injury. Firefighter Shawn Farrell of Engine Co. 15 fell some down stairs and suffered undisclosed injuries.

Capt. Vincent Rivera also fell down stairs and injured his elbow and Capt. John Mattern of Engine Co. 5. suffered a burn on his left arm.

By yesterday afternoon, all five injured firefighters had been released from the hospital.

A temporary shelter was set up at the Jersey City Board of Education headquarters at 346 Claremont Ave., across the street from where the fire started.

Of the 52 people displaced, 26 (eight families) were provided temporary shelter by the American Red Cross, officials said.

City building department inspectors were at the scene yesterday trying to figure out if any of the homes are salvageable, said Roman, who, having seen the burnt shells up close, doubted it.

• Tweet