Fire engulfs former Hamilton warehouse, 3rd big fire this week

🔴 Fire started at the former Goodall Rubber Complex in Hamilton around midnight Thursday

🔴 Firefighters were at the warehouse all night into the morning

🔴 A South Brunswick warehouse and old Trenton school also burned this week

HAMILTON (Mercer) — Two warehouses caught fire within 12 hours of each other in South Brunswick and Hamilton including one visible on weather radar.

A fire was reported around 12:35 a.m. Thursday at the former Goodall Rubber Complex on Whitehead Road in Hamilton, according to Hamilton Fire Chief Christopher Tozzi. The fire sent plumes of thick smoke into the air over Trenton, Lawrence and Hamilton. News 12 New Jersey reported four buildings were involved in the fire.

26 firefighting units from 14 municipalities assisted Hamilton firefighters with the fire. One firefighter sustained non-life threatening injuries.

Video from over the fire showed a partially collapsed roof. Hamilton Township's Construction Officer determined that portions of the building will have to be demolished.

FIre at the former Goodall Rubber Complex in Hamilton (Hamilton Township)

Keeping the neighborhood safe

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection found no concerns in air samples taken from around the area of the warehouse.

The building is now owned by Hakim International Trading, a company that buys stock being liquidated by retailers. Textbooks stacked on pallets could be seen burning inside one of the buildings, according to NBC Philadelphia.

A resident told CBS Philadelphia the neighborhood around the warehouse was evacuated.

Firefighters were drawing water from the nearby Assunpink Creek to fight the fire and some power was cut, according to NBC Philadelphia.

Route 1 was closed in both directions for most of the overnight hours at the Whitehead Road exit. Only the exit remained closed at the start of the morning commute.

The fire is under investigation by the Hamilton Township Police, Hamilton Township Fire Investigation Unit, and the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office.

Fire in South Brunswick

Earlier, over 150 firefighters responded to a fire on the roof of a warehouse on Progress Drive in South Brunswick Wednesday afternoon. Fifteen workers were in the building when the fire was reported, according to South Brunswick police. There were no reported injuries.

The fire was not expected to be considered to be completely extinguished until sometime Thursday, according to South Brunswick Deputy Police Chief James Ryan.

Fire in a warehouse on Progress Drive in South Brunswick 5/18/23 (South Brunswick police)

Century-old former school burns

A fire Monday at the 107-year-old former Martin Luther King Middle School on Route 206 in Trenton destroyed most of the building and collapsed the roof. Embers from the fire landed on several homes, causing them to also burn.

The new Martin Luther King Junior School located next door was not affected by the fire.

Fire weather conditions will improve Thursday thanks to lighter winds and an uptick in humidity, according to New Jersey 101.5 Chief Meteorologist Dan Zarrow.

Fire at the old MLK Middle School in Trenton 5/15/23 (Brian McCarthy, MidJersey.news)

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

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