From the Atlantic City Press Published: Wednesday, October 22, 2008

The glow of fire illuminates smoke clouds at Atsion Lake in Shamong Township, N.J. on Tuesday. The forest fire burned through parts of three southern New Jersey counties Tuesday, engulfing hundreds of acres of forest and forcing the closure of Route 206. (AP Photo/Curt Hudson) Curt Hudson

10:30 a.m. Update - HAMMONTON — A fire in Wharton State Forest continued to spread Wednesday morning as Route 206 remained closed from Atsion Lake to the White Horse Pike and a handful of homes and businesses remained evacuated.

“Most of it is low ground, swampy, organic. It’ll tend to burn like a charcoal briquette,” said Bert Plante, division fire warden for the state Forest Fire Service, about 10 a.m.

The fire is growing beyond 1,000 acres, the approximate size of many forest fires in recent years, Plante said. Recently burned forest land is less at risk of damage in this blaze, the warden added.

Officials have not determined precisely where and why the fire began. Fire service helicopters are attempting to map the spread of the flames.



Wharton State Forest Fire Raw Footage 10/22/08

Provided By: Mullica News

The Elwood Fire Company was called to Rt 206 in Hammonton for a forest fire at 5:03pm on Oct 21st. Tanker 16-5 responded to the scene and Engine 16-3 responded to Hammonton Station#2 for cover. Laureldale's Tanker 18-38 covered Elwood Station 160.













Forest Fire Burning In South Jersey News Clip



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Your fire safety and prevention is important to us. Therefore we are providing you with a couple of fire prevention tips.

1. You should test all smoke detectors at least once a month by pushing and holding the test button. When you change your clocks in the spring and fall you should also replace the batteries in all of your smoke detectors. Also it's a good idea to vacuum your detector, so that cobwebs and dust particles do not prevent the detector from working properly.

2. If your smoke detectors are older than 10 years old, you need to replace them. Detectors only work properly for about ten years. Smoke detectors can be purchased from most hardware and general drug stores.

3. You should have at least one smoke detector on every floor of your house. Also you should have a detector in the immediately adjacent area next to any bedroom or other sleeping quarters. Usually, you should place your smoke detectors on the ceiling or on the wall within one foot of the ceiling. Remember, always follow your manufacturer's directions.

For more information about smoke detectors check out the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)

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From the Atlantic City Press Published: Wednesday, October 15, 2008

By ERIC SCOTT CAMPBELL Staff Writer, 609-272-7227








HAMMONTON - A car that had pulled around railroad gates at the Bellevue Avenue crossing was struck Tuesday by a westbound NJ Transit train, injuring the driver and his dog, town police said.

The accident happened just before 1 p.m. Anthony Daversa, of Glenolden, Pa., was pulled from his vehicle and flown by helicopter to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center, City Campus, in Atlantic City, where he was listed in fair condition three hours after the accident. Hammonton Police Chief Frank Ingemi said Daversa was thought to have facial and internal injuries.

Train 4614 left Atlantic City at 12:21 p.m. and was scheduled to stop at 12:50 p.m. in Hammonton, a few blocks before Bellevue Avenue. The gates, lights and bells at the crossing were working normally at the time of the accident, NJ Transit spokesman Joe Dee said.

Ingemi said it appeared the vehicle was headed west on South Egg Harbor Road and that Daversa made a left turn around the gate to cross the tracks. Daversa's vehicle was not identified.

The driver's small dog was seriously injured. A Hammonton police officer took it for treatment at Shore Veterinarian in town.

The undamaged train resumed its trip at 2:10 p.m., Dee said, and none of the 73 passengers in its four coaches was injured.

The train accident was at least the second of the day in New Jersey. At about 9 a.m., a train on the Raritan Valley line in Union County struck and killed an unidentified person whom NJ Transit described as trespassing on the tracks. That train was delayed for 90 minutes.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

E-mail Eric Scott Campbell: ECampbell@pressofac.com

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