Atlantic City blaze forces evacuation of five buildings
From Press staff reports | Posted: Wednesday, September 16, 2009 | 5 comments
ATLANTIC CITY - Several buildings were evacuated Wednesday afternoon after roof work sparked a blaze on the 1400 block of Atlantic Avenue.
The roofer working at the Bangla Bazar did not have a fire permit, Battalion Chief Michael Mooney said. The required inspection likely would have alerted officials to any problems with the work, which includes using a blowtorch.
Several buildings had to be evacuated, including the eight-story office complex at 1 S. New York Ave. Dr. Kenneth Berger, who runs the Opitcal Room on the first floor there, called 911 when he saw smoke while returning from lunch just before 2 p.m. He said firefighters were on the scene in four minutes.
About 40 firefighters were on the scene, including about 25 who worked on the roof where the fire began.
The fire was under control by 3:30 p.m., but firefighters remained on the scene.
This story is developing. Check back for updates.
Posted in Breaking on Wednesday, September 16, 2009 3:05 pm Updated: 5:25 pm.
