Posted From MyCentralJersey.com

Readington blaze damages house

By LINDA SADLOUSKOS
STAFF WRITER

A fire heavily damaged a home at 27 Goldfinch Lane and killed two pet dogs inside while the family who lived there was at church Sunday morning, Fire Chief Jamie Reed of the Three Bridges Volunteer Fire Company said.

The fire's origin appeared to be related to a kitchen appliance, Reed said. However, he said, the Hunterdon County Prosecutor's Office was continuing to investigate the cause Sunday afternoon.

The fire was reported at 11:01 a.m. and took about 40 minutes to bring under control, Reed said. He said firefighters, rescue workers and other emergency personnel were at the scene for about four hours.

No one was injured or in the home at the time of the blaze, Reed said. Heavy smoke was pouring out of the eaves by the time firefighters arrived, he said.

The fire damaged the kitchen and an area of the second floor above the kitchen, Reed said. He also said the entire house was left with extensive smoke damage. "The house is definitely uninhabitable," he said.

Volunteer firefighters from the Three Bridges and Readington fire companies were in charge of extinguishing the blaze, while rescue squads from Flemington-Raritan and Branchburg took control of the scene. However, he said, numerous other departments responded, including a task force from South County, which brought water tankers to the scene.

The township Road Department salted the roads to prevent ice from forming on the street, Read said.

From: http://www.mycentraljersey.com/article/20100110/NEWS/1100325/Readington+blaze+damages+house