OFFICIALS STRESS IMPORTANCE OF WORKING SMOKE DETECTORS IN WAKE OF MARGATE FIRE
MARGATE-- Fire officials hope Saturday's tragedy will help stress the importance of fire safety to residents.
"You never think it will happen to you or someone you know, but it is devastating, horrible," said Janis Goldberg, who is the cousin of the home owner.
The margate community is still in shock after Saturday morning's fatal fire that left....Continue Reading
75 year old Ralph Spinosi and 68-year-old Jessica Spinosi, dead. The couple was renting the upstairs level of the house at 316 North Thurlow Avenue from 54-year-old Donna Saber, who made it out of the fire safely and ran to her neighbors to call 911.
"I couldn't believe it, shocked. i have a lot of history in this house. we had a lot of parties, birthday and family reunions" Goldberg said, after visiting the house Sunday along with several other residents.
"Such an unfortunate tragedy to loose someone like this in a fire, first thing that comes to mind is it is your responsibility and could it have been prevented so it is heartbreaking to everyone involved this," said Margate City Fire Chief Anthony Tobasso.
Officials began boarding up windows, and the chief of the fire department said at this time there is no known cause of the fire, but it could be electrical.
"Electrical issues occur often, it could be a faulty circuit or an extension cord."
Officials say there were smoke detectors in the house but they were not working at the time of the fire, which is something the fire department is trying to raise awareness about to residents in their city, starting on Monday.
"Were going to canvas the neighborhood immediately around the fire. Then we will go to the whole town, just giving them all information about our program and offering free smoke detectors to them," said Tobasso.
Autopsy results reveal that both victims died of smoke inhalation, according to Atlantic County Prosecutors. Their deaths have been ruled as accidental.
