2 Serious Fires In Middletown Over Memorial Day Weekend

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — There were two serious fires in Middletown over the long holiday weekend:

The most recent fire broke out at 4:30 p.m. Memorial Day Monday, and this is the fire that shut down part of Rt. 36 for several hours Monday afternoon, according to Middletown Fire Dept. media spokesman Rob Allen.

The fire broke out at 4:28 p.m. at Siren's Seafood restaurant on the 900 block of Rt. 36 in Leonardo.

Safety Officer Robert Kegley responded and arrived on scene to find heavy smoke coming from the commercial structure and blowing over Rt. 36. Middletown Fire Chief William Kane, Jr. immediately upgraded the fire and called in more units.

Brevent Park, Leonardo Fire Company and Community Fire Company responded and were met with heavy fire conditions inside the structure. An aggressive attack by firefighters allowed for a quick knockdown of the main body of fire, while additional units from Belford Independent and Navesink Hook and Ladder worked on the overhaul of the structure to confirm no further spread of fire had occurred.

Port Monmouth First Aid and Middletown EMS were both on scene with one ambulance each, and provided firefighter rehabilitation services. EMS units operated for just over an hour before being released by Fire Department command.

Prior to this, a fire broke out at 1:40 a.m. Friday, May 24 on the 100 block of New Monmouth Road in New Monmouth. This was a basement fire.

First Assistant Chief Daniel Kelly arrived first and confirmed a working basement fire. Middletown Fire units were able to stop the fire before it spread further in the home.

In that fire, Port Monmouth First Aid provided standby services with two ambulances on scene for nearly two hours before being released by Fire Department command.

The cause of both fires remains under investigation by the Middletown Township Fire Marshall’s Office, under the direction of Edward “Buddy” Skelly.