Atlantic City Fire Leaves 37 Homeless

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. - A firefighter has been hospitalized and 37 people left homeless as a result of a fire that ripped through a Memorial Avenue rooming house late Saturday night because of an unattended kitchen hot plate, according to fire officials.

Atlantic City Fire Chief Dennis Brooks said the fire was reported at 1401 Memorial Ave., around 11:45 p.m. and firefighters were able to respond within three minutes. However, several people had already had difficulty in escaping the blaze prior to their arrival, including a mother and her two children.

According to Brooks, the mother dropped her two small children from an upper window to people standing below, who were able to catch them, and then she jumped out of the window. Brooks said he was unsure of her injuries Sunday.

A total of 30 adults and seven children had been left homeless after the fire, which Brooks estimated to have caused between $300,000 and $500,000 in structural damages.

Investigators have determined the fire to have been accidental, and a kitchen hot plate that was located in a front room on the first floor likely ignited it.

During the ordeal, Brooks said a firefighter had to be hospitalized with a lung injury. He said the firefighter was admitted to an intensive care unit and remained hospitalized as of Sunday afternoon.