PINE BEACH – Police reported that when they arrived at the site of a house fire, they found a 74-year-old woman on the ground outside.
The house, at the intersection of Radnor and New Jersey Avenue, was fully engulfed when police arrived. The incident happened just before noon on New Year’s Day. Police released new information about the case today.
Pine Beach Police Officer Steve Araneo, South Toms River First Aid Chief Robert Krohn and Beachwood First Aid administered medical assistance to the woman, police said. She was then transported by Mon-Oc helicopter to the Burn Center at Saint Barnabas in Livingston.
It was later learned that the woman was rescued from the fire by neighbors Richard Englehardt and Dennis Kopin, an off-duty fireman in Carteret.
The Pine Beach Police Department commended Englehardt and Kopin “for their courageous and lifesaving actions in removing the victim from further danger.”
The Department also thanked Beachwood Sgt. Derek Mussari who assisted at the scene, Pine Beach Volunteer Fire Company No.1, Beachwood Volunteer Fire Department, Bayville Fire Department, Ocean Gate Fire Department, Ocean County Fire Marshall, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, Ocean County Sheriff’s Department, Beachwood Emergency Medical Services, South Toms River EMS, Berkeley Township First Aid, Mon-Oc – New Jersey’s Hospital Service Corporation, and the Beachwood Police Department for all their assistance and dedicated service.
At this time, the fire is under investigation by the Ocean County Fire Marshal.