Crime & Safety

Lightning Strikes Teaneck Home

Teaneck firefighters worked for four hours Saturday night to extinguish the Wyndham Road house fire.

Submitted by the Teaneck Fire Department:

On Saturday April 26, 2014 at 7:21 p.m., multiple calls were received for a house hit by lightning at 495 Wyndham Rd. Engines 2, 1, 3, Ladder 1 and Deputy Chief Browning responded.  Upon arrival four minutes later, Engine 2 saw smoke coming from the attic of this Tudor style home. No one was home so they forced entry and stretched a hose line to the attic of the home. They found a half height attic with items in storage, making even difficult conditions worse as they moved items to access the fire.    

They extinguished the fire and then required multiple companies to complete removal of items to overhaul the area. While doing that they found additional fire in a kneewall area of the attic. The overhaul was made even more difficult by a hidden roof due to past renovations.

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Engine 1 supplied water to Engine 2 from a nearby hydrant and then entered the building to assist with fire attack. As the Tower Ladder only had two members assigned, DC Browning assigned Engine 3 to assist them ventilate the roof of the structure.  With a now five man truck company, this was accomplished much quicker and safer. 

Engine 4 was unable to respond as they were on Starview Court with burning electrical wires in a home. Once clear, at 7:44 p.m. they responded to Wyndham.

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Units operated for four hours. An overnight fire watch was needed due to the storage in the attic and existence of the double roof.  The fire is currently under investigation, but we have confirmed it was hit by lightning.

“Prompt notification by concerned residents made the difference in this fire” said Deputy Chief Paul Browning. “A quick response by their neighborhood fire company minimized damage to the structure”.

Hackensack, Ridgefield Park and Englewood FD’s responded to the scene to assist with suppression and overhaul.

Bergenfield, Bogota and Ridgefield Park FD’s covered the town from fire headquarters, along with a recall engine company from Teaneck.


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