115 Springdale Avenue

Although there were no injuries, a ravaging fire left 11 people without a home as of Friday, June 4th, 2010.

The fire occurred at 518 Springdale Avenue, and tore through the three-family home before firefighters could bring it under control. The house, according to fire marshal Kevin Hayes Sr., has been left uninhabitable.

Hayes said there is no official cause for the fire yet.

"That requires some fire investigation," he said.

Hayes said the call came in just after 10 a.m. Friday, and was reported by Corporal Raymond Chaparro, who was on patrol and saw the smoke. By the time firefighters arrived, there was already heavy fire in the rear second-floor building apartment.

Only one person was home at the time of the fire, Hayes said, and she was "evacuated and uninjured."

"There are no other injuries to report at this time," he added.

The three-family home gave firefighters quite a challenge, although they had the fire under control within about an hour and a half, he said. The firefighters had to fight from outside the home after the fire chief ordered them to evacuate the house because of danger.

"The firemen were initially inside, but things worsened," Hayes said. "The building suffered extensive fire damage and the roof collapsed."

Even after the fire was under control, firefighters spent hours locating and knocking out hot spots inside the walls, he said.

The American Red Cross provided some temporary help in the form of housing and clothing for the 11 displaced people, Hayes said. They will be put up in a hotel for a number of days until permanent housing can be found.

Long Branch has one fire department and 10 fire companies, and all responded, Hayes said. In addition, they received help from a number of mutual aid companies from Monmouth County.