An explosion caused by a natural gas line leak and the resultant fire burned down a house on Trumbull Avenue in Lawrence Township on Nov. 24, sending plumes of dark smoke into the air over the Colonial Heights neighborhood off Brunswick Pike.
The fire at 749 Trumbull Ave., which was reported at 4:25 p.m., brought firefighters from Lawrence Township and surrounding towns to battle the flames and to keep the fire from spreading to two adjacent houses.
Firefighters from the Slackwood Fire Company were on the scene in less than four minutes, said Fire Chief Chris Pangaldi of the Slackwood Fire Company. Trumbull Avenue is across Brunswick Pike from the fire company’s Slack Avenue headquarters.
When firefighters arrived, they found flames coming out of the windows and the roof, Pangaldi said. The response was upgraded to a three-alarm fire and mutual aid from neighboring fire companies was requested.
There were initial reports the occupants of the home were trapped inside, but they had escaped the burning residence and firefighters found them standing in front of a neighbor’s home, Pangaldi said.
Firefighters made an aggressive attack on the burning house and sprayed water on the side of the two neighboring houses, he said. The heat from the fire melted the vinyl siding on the side of the homes that faced the burning house.
Pangaldi said it took about an hour to knock down the flames and bring the fire under control. Firefighters were on the scene for about five hours, making sure the flames had been extinguished.
In addition to the three Lawrence Township fire companies, the fire brought firefighters from Trenton, Hamilton, Ewing, West Windsor and Plainsboro to the scene. Lawrence Township Emergency Medical Services and the Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad also responded.
Lawrence Township officials said the fire apparently started when the homeowner improperly shut down a main natural gas line while doing work on his home. The gas line leak ignited, causing the explosion and the resulting fire that destroyed the home, according to officials.