Fire Temporarily Closes Morris Co. Mall Electronics Store

LEDGEWOOD, NJ — A Morris County family-owned electronics chain store went up in flames on Thursday morning, according to Mike Pellek, the Roxbury Township Fire Official.

The P.C. Richard & Son store, located at 10 Commerce Blvd., in Succasunna, is temporarily closed after a fire caused a building evacuation and structural damage.

No injuries were reported as a result of the fire.

Pellek said the department was notified of the fire at 11:40 a.m. after a caller from the mall across the street reported seeing black smoke coming from the back of the building.

" I rode around the entire building hoping it was going to be a car fire, dumpster fire, or brush fire in the back of the building, and it was actually coming from the roof," Pellek told Patch.

The P.C. Richard & Son store and an attached pet store were both evacuated shortly after the call was made.

The fire was then upgraded to a second alarm, bringing more fire resources to the scene. When firefighters arrived on the scene, they discovered that the roof was on fire, involving some of the solar panels.

The HVAC unit on the roof was also on fire, as was the roof decking, Pellek said.

Firefighters were able to put out the fire within 20 minutes.

The only damage to the interior of the building occurred when the water from the hose got into the store and landed on some of the merchandise, fire officials said.

Pellek said that as a result of the roof fire, the store would remain closed until the necessary construction is complete. "It was localized, and it just started making it to the parapet wall. But there was never any smoke down inside the store. They are closed for business right now until they can make all the necessary repairs."

The exact cause of the fire is still under investigation, the police said.