Oil-Soaked Rags Catch Fire, Damage Toms River Home

TOMS RIVER, NJ — A blaze at a house that started when a pile of oil-soaked rags caught fire left a Toms River home unsafe for habitation on Saturday, fire officials said.

The fire at a two-story home on Powder Horn Road has been ruled accidental, said Matthew Janora, chief of the Toms River Bureau of Fire Prevention. It was reported at 5:17 a.m. Saturday by a neighbor who saw smoke coming from the home, he said.

There were no injuries reported to first responders or to civilians at the home, which was unoccupied and undergoing renovations, he said. The fire started due to spontaneous combustion of oil-soaked rags in a debris pile in the garage. The wood floors inside of the home were redone less than 48 hours before the fire, Janora said.

Firefighters from the Pleasant Plains Fire Department quickly extinguished the fire, checked for extension, and ventilated the home, Janora said. Crews remained at the site for about two hours, he said. Units from Silverton Volunteer Fire Company, East Dover Fire Company, and Whitesville Fire Company also responded, he said.

Due to the damage and disconnection of the utilities, the building was posted as unsafe by the Toms River Township Building Department.

"Oil-soaked rags can undergo spontaneous combustion due to the oxidation of oils, which generates heat over time," Janora said. "If the heat cannot dissipate, it can ignite the rags, leading to a fire."

"To safely dispose of oil-soaked rags, lay them flat in a well-ventilated area to dry completely before disposal, or store them in an approved sealed metal container to prevent combustion," he said.