One man was badly burned during a fire yesterday that apparently started in his room at the Super 8 Motel on Route 46 in South Hackensack, New Jersey. The two-alarm fire also left two firefighters injured and two police officers with smoke inhalation. Little Ferry Fire Chief Rob Cordasco told WABC-TV (below), “We were very low on manpower.” The chief cited that and the freezing temperatures as problems for firefighters. (Thanks to Firefighter Close Calls for alerting us to this fire.)
More details from an aticle by Marlene Naanes and Nick Clunn:
Investigators identified the victim as 40-year-old Peter Mortimer. Medics rushed him to the Burn Center at St. Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, where he was listed Tuesday night in critical condition, a nursing supervisor said.
Two firefighters and two police officers also sustained minor injuries in the towering blaze that appeared to have started in a second-floor room occupied by the victim about 7:15 a.m., Little Ferry Fire Chief Rob Cordasco said.
The Police Department, notified of the fire by a 911 caller, dispatched officers to evacuate the two-story building on the westbound side of the highway.
