Fire Damages Side of House on Point Beach's Parkway

There were no injuries in a fire that damaged the side porch and part of the underside of a house on Parkway in Point Beach, according to Point Beach Deputy Fire Chief Frank Finn.

The cause of the fire has not yet been determined, but is under investigation by the Ocean County Fire Marshal's office, Finn said.

The fire, which is not considered suspicious, started in a bathroom/utility area, said Detective Patrick Petruzziello.

Police and firefighters were dispatched at 1:36 p.m. Monday, said Deputy Fire Chief Frank Finn.

The call was made by a resident who happened to walk nearby and saw smoke coming from the rear and side of the home, Petruzziello said.

When firefighters arrived at the scene, they found a fire blazing from the side porch and the section of house just beneath it, Finn said.

The fire was handled by about 15 Beach firefighters, who primarily fought the interior blaze and about half a dozen Point Borough firefighters, who tackled the exterior blaze, Finn said.

"There was heavy smoke and heavy heat inside," Finn said.

It took about 30 to 45 minutes to extinguish the blaze, including pulling out walls to make the blaze had not spread behind them, Finn said.

"The power was coming back to some of the homes here when this happened," said Finn, adding he did not know if there was a connection between those two events.

The home had flood damage from the hurricane and investigators will consider whether that factor played any role in the fire, Petruzziello said.

Finn said the house was unoccupied at the time of the blaze.

The Point Pleasant First Aid and Emergency Squad, the Point Borough First Aid Squad, and fire departments from Wall and South Wall also assisted at the scene.