Two Monmouth County Men Praised for Fighting House Fire After Breaking Down Door

Photo: Sent in by a Patch reader, Middletown heroes Mike Battaglioli and Pat Hussey

These are the type of neighbors we all wish we could have!

Two Middletown men are being praised by police for their quick actions, after noticing a house on fire on Hosford Avenue, in the Leonardo section of Middletown.

Mike Battaglioli and Pat Hussey are credited by neighbors and Middletown police for kicking in the front door of the home and checking to see if any residents were inside. When ensuring there was no one in the home, the two men began to fight the house fire with a garden hose, according to Middletown Police Detective Lt. Stephen Dollinger.

Fire departments arrived on the scene shortly after a call was made, but police are crediting the quick-thinking neighbors with helping to fight the house fire, and also making sure no residents were home at the time.

In praising the men, Dollinger said, “They did a really nice job.”

Pat Hussey spoke to Patch, and explained how the two men were at Battaglioli’s residence, across the street from the scene of the fire, and were unloading equipment in the driveway when they smelled smoke, but could not see anything.

“We smelled it for about twenty minutes, and then we saw cars start to pull over. Then we could see smoke coming from a house across the street,” Hussey says.

Battaglioli, who knows the residents of the home, located at 51 Hosford Avenue, felt an immediate need to act when he noticed a car in the driveway. The men say they became concerned about the possibility of someone being trapped inside.

“Our main concern was that someone was inside the house, and couldn’t get out,” Hussey said.

Hussey says that he and Battaglioli kicked in the back door and made their way to the front of the house, which had already began to fill with smoke, and began searching for people. He says the smoke was already filling the upstairs of the house, preventing the men from searching for people upstairs.

“We didn’t feel safe going up the stairs, but we were screaming and looking for a dog some of the other neighbors thought might be in the house, but we didn’t see anyone or any pets,” Hussey said.

The two men went out the front door after feeling confident that no one was in the home, and noticed a hose on the side. According to Hussey, the men brought the hose through the front door, and began shooting water into the room the fire was the worst in, which Hussey believes was the kitchen of the home.

Within minutes, he says fire trucks arrived on the scene, and began to battle the worsening fire.

Hussey believes the fire appeared to have damaged a large portion of the house, but feels that he and Battaglioli did the best they could to contain the fire to “one or two rooms”.

“But I feel horrible that someone just lost their home. I had to go and sit on the front lawn afterward, and just took it all in.”

Battaglioli also spoke to Patch, and says he is just grateful no one was home at the time of the fire. He says he was worried during the fire, because while Hussey continued to spray water into the rooms on fire, he continued to search the best he could throughout the rest of the home, but the fire was just too thick.

“I’m just thanking God that no one was upstairs, because we just didn’t know. We couldn’t get up there, and we couldn’t see,” Battaglioli says.

Lt. Dollinger says the a called came into the station reporting the house fire at approximately 9:30, and by 9:33 the Middletown Township Fire Department was dispatched to the scene.

Approximately 35 firefighters from three companies of the Middletown Township Fire Department (Brevent Park, Community, and Belford Engine Fire Companies), responded to the scene, under the command of 2nd Assistant Chief Tony Citarella.

A spokesman for the Middletown Township Fire Department confirmed that the fire did originate from the kitchen of the home.

An engine from Community Fire Company pumped water from a nearby fire hydrant to the scene. Chief Citarella requested mutual aid from the Borough of Atlantic Highlands to supply a ladder truck which arrived with more firefighters. Multiple ground ladders were used to access the roof and attic space.

Upon his arrival, 3rd Assistant Chief Ryan Clarke assumed command of the firefighting efforts inside the structure, according to the Fire Department spokesman. The firefighters rapidly extinguished the fire in the kitchen and adjacent attic space. Under Chief Clarke’s direction, the crews used tarps to protect the contents in the house from sustaining additional damage during the overhaul of the fire area.
Chief Citarella declared the fire under control by 10:00 AM. The last units left the scene by 11:00 a.m.

The fire was contained to the kitchen and attic area. However, despite everyone’s best efforts, the structure was declared uninhabitable, due to heavy fire and smoke damage, was declared uninhabitable.

The Middletown Township Fire Department Air Unite also assisted at the scene. No one was injured during the incident, and the fire is being investigated by the Middletown Township Fire Prevention.

The police and fire departments praise Battaglioli and Hussey for their efforts in searching for possible victims and attempting to contain the fire.

Hussey says he plans to return to the home to meet the residents and see how they are coping after their loss, but he can rest assured knowing that he would have potentially saved their lives if they had been home at the time.

“It’s the least we could do at the time,” Hussey said.