House fire’s victims plan to rebuild

North Bank Street home will be rebuilt

By:Alec Moore
   A North Bank Street family has been displaced from their home as a result of a fire that occurred in the morning of June 11.
   Although the blaze caused severe damage to their home, homeowners Greg and Donna Huzinec, and their children, are grateful that the fire did not claim more than just their house and possessions.
   "I get upset when I walk through the rooms and I see the photos of our children burned, but then I snap out of it when I realize that this could have been so much worse," said Ms. Huzinec.
   "So many worse things could have happened, we could have been inside when this happened, we could have been overcome by smoke and we could have ended up in a different place than where we are now. God was watching out for us."
   Mr. Huzinec agrees and says that despite the damage to their home, which they moved into roughly two years ago, the family is grateful to be unharmed and looking toward the future.
   "We’re doing about as well as can be expected. We’re keeping our spirits up and we’re grateful that no one was hurt," said Mr. Huzinec, who pointed out that the fire claimed virtually all of their furniture, clothes and personal possessions.
   One possession that the family is especially grateful not to have lost, however, is their dog Brandy, who was being groomed elsewhere when the fire occurred.
   "We lost everything, but we’ve gotten a lot of support from family and friends," he added, noting that he and his wife and their two younger children — an 18-year old son and an 8-year old daughter –– are now staying in a motel at the expense of their insurance company. The family expects to be displaced for about six months while their home is being repaired.
   "It has a lot of structural damage but it can be rebuilt," said Mr. Huzinec, whose feelings were shared by his wife. "We really like our street and all of our neighbors are great and we like the town so as long as our insurance company gives us enough money to rebuild then that’s what we’re going to do."
   According to police, the fire was reported at 9:37 a.m. by a neighbor. Manville Police Sgt. Paul Meixner and Officer William Sampson were the first emergency responders to arrive on the scene and immediately set out to get anyone who may have been inside the home out.
   "That’s always the first thing we want to do in a fire, get the people out," said Manville Police Lt. Mark Sniscak.
   The officers kicked in the door to the home to search for occupants and made their way into the living room but were unable to proceed further into the home due to thick smoke that filled the entire home.
   The Manville Fire Department arrived on the scene a few minutes after the officers had gone inside. Firefighters then located and extinguished the source of the blaze, found in the basement of the home.
   Mr. Huzenic indicated that Manville Fire Marshall Barry Van Horn has determined that an accidental electrical problem was the cause of the blaze.
   Anyone who wishes to make a contribution to the Huzenic family may send contributions to them at their home address at 24 North Bank Street, Manville, New Jersey 08835.