'Consider Keeping Windows Closed' In Hoboken Due To Fire, Says Ambulance Head

WEST NEW YORK, NJ — As two fires burned along a busy business corridor in Union City and West New York, N.J., the head of Hoboken's ambulance squad told residents to "consider keeping windows closed" if they were in the path of the smoke.

However, the smoke from the blazes, five miles north of Hoboken, could be better seen and smelled in New York City on Wednesday morning.

The Arson Task Force of the Hudson County Prosecutor's Office is probing the five-alarm fire that destroyed at least five businesses in West New York, they said.

Late in the morning, Hoboken officials said they were assisting with the fire:

The fire forced buses to use alternate routes, including NJ Transit buses heading through Hudson County north to the George Washington Bridge:

The larger fire was centered in the area of Bergenline Avenue and 61st Street, the Prosecutor's Office said.

Sitting outside on Hoboken's Washington Street on Wednesday morning, former bakery owner Cosmo Sancilio said he smelled the smoke but was unaware of the fire. "Is it a big one?" he asked.

Several other residents who had started to smell smoke also said they were unaware of the blaze. But across the Hudson River, residents of the Upper West Side reported smelling smoke after 6 a.m. on Wednesday morning. READ MORE: Massive NJ Fire Appears To Leave The Upper West Side Smelling Of Smoke

According to News12NJ, the fire displaced 15 families.

A fire official told the news channel there were no injuries.

Some residents asked if the two fires were connected, especially in light of rapid development going on in the county.

Patch Editor Caren Lissner contributed reporting to this story.