1 dead, 3 cops hospitalized after fire in Manchester, NJ

🔥 Manchester police officers encountered heavy smoke and heat at the house

🔥 The officers were hospitalized after trying to rescue a resident

🔥 The cause and origin of the fire remain under investigation

MANCHESTER — A woman is dead and another is in critical condition after a house fire Sunday evening.

Three police officers were hospitalized but have been released.

The first police officers responding to the house fully engulfed in flames on Heron Street in the Cedar Glen West senior living park around 6:50 p.m. were told by family members that one person was still inside.

Three officers who tried to rescue one of the residents were unsuccessful because of heavy smoke and heat, according to police Lt. James Komsa. The were able to rescue another woman, who remains in critical condition at the hospital.

Residents from nearby homes and buildings were evacuated as a precaution.

House on Heron Street in Manchester after a fire 3/19/23 (Manchester police)

Under investigation

Komsa did not disclose the identity of the person trapped inside the home pending notification of the rest of their family.

The Lakewood Scoop reported the person trapped inside the house was an elderly man.

Red Cross New Jersey said its volunteers provided temporary lodging, food & clothing needs for the family.

The cause and origin of the fire is unknown and under investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Arson Unit, Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, Manchester Township Police Department Detective Bureau, Ocean County Fire Marshal’s Office, and Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office.

House on Heron Street in Manchester after a fire 3/19/23 (OCSN)

Response to a fire on Heron Street in Manchester 3/19/23 (The Lakewood Scoop)

Dan Alexander is a reporter for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at dan.alexander@townsquaremedia.com

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