Freehold Firefighters Join in Response to Howell Blaze

HOWELL -- A fire on Villanova Drive was reported at approximately 11:30 a.m. Tuesday. 

The fire, on the otherwise quiet street near the Freehold border, brought departments from all over the area to the scene. Firefighters from as far away as Naval Weapons Station Earle responded, as well as those from some of the Howell departments and neighboring Freehold Township and Freehold Borough. 

According to Carl Yaeger, a resident of Villanova Drive who called 9-1-1, he could smell the smoke as soon as he left the house. "I just left my house, smelled the smoke, drove down here, saw the smoke coming out of the house and called 9-1-1," he said. "Right now we have no idea what's going on.

Yaeger said he and his family have lived on the street for 17 years and had never seen anything like what he experienced on Tuesday morning. "I smelled the smoke and then I looked both ways down the street and saw it coming from this way so I drove down here." The 22-year-old said when he arrived at the scene there was smoke coming from "multiple windows," and added that there was "definitely a lot of smoke."

The fire is believed to have begun in the basement and spread to upper floors. According to the Howell Police Department, Patrolman Rob Hill was the first officer on the scene where "the home was fully engulfed with smoke pouring out of the roof rafters."

During the battle with the blaze, the first floor collapsed and the house itself "suffered extensive damage and is considered a total loss," according to the police report. 

All told there were 14 agencies involved in the fire. The include, the Howell Police Department, the Howell Police EMS, as well as the Howell Township Fire Bureau. Fire companies responding included the Adelphia Fire Company, the Farmingdale Fire Company and the Freewood Acres Fire Company.

Mutual aid was also supplied by the Freehold Borough Fire Department, the Freehold Township Independent Fire Co. No. 1, and representatives from Earle Naval Weapons Fire Company.

In addition to the police and fire representatives, local first aid squads also reported to the scene.  They included the Howell First Aid, the Farmingdale-Howell First Aid and the Ramtown First Aid Squads. The Monmouth County Fire Marshall's Office also responded.