By Matt Rooney | The Save Jersey Blog
Updated 9:57 p.m.
Governor Chris Christie was on scene and receiving briefings at the burning Seaside Boardwalk, Save Jerseyans, where a several-alarm fire finally came under control sometime after 9 p.m. Thursday night. Christie had declared a state of emergency shortly after arriving.
At one point, 400+ firefighters were reportedly on hand. The massive blaze raged from Stockton Avenue to Lincoln Street and, in order to contain the blaze, a 20 foot trench was dug at the Lincoln intersection in order to allow the fire to burn in one direction only and (hopefully) spare the rest of the boardwalk… that’s where firefighters tried to make a stand and contain this thing…
The bad news: up to 50 businesses have been destroyed and significant portions of the boardwalk are wrecked…
The Shore can’t buy good luck, can it? Seaside Park’s boardwalk was one of the few relatively spared by Sandy; you’ll recall that the Seaside Heights stretch of boardwalk had been obliterated last October.
Accompanying the Governor were New Jersey State Fire Marshall William Kramer, Department of Community Affairs Commissioner Richard Constable, and President of New Jersey’s Economic Development Authority Michele Brown.
“Pictures and video of the fire are startling and sad given what Seaside Park and neighboring Seaside Heights have endured with Superstorm Sandy,” said Michael Drewniak, the Governor’s press secretary, while the Governor sped south to inspect the damage. “Governor Christie is deeply concerned and will get a first-hand look shortly at the scene, where he will be speaking further with Mayor Matthies and Mayor Akers and offering the state’s full resources and assistance. Our concerns and prayers are also with firefighters and first responders at the scene battling the blaze.”
Awful. May God bless the citizens of Seaside Park and keep the emergency personnel safe as they battle this potentially catastrophic fire. They need it.
You can click here to see some live tweets and instagram photos via NJ.com…
Here’s Governor Christie’s press conference:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHWabefyEyg
the country is crashing and burning and this guy wants us to pray for a trashy boardwalk . . . . . . .
@Elizabeth I'm not even sure that you deserve a response…
What an ugly comment…your ignorance is truly astonishing. You're talking about a boardwalk that provides thousands of jobs, home to dozens of businesses. These peoples' lives have just been destroyed for the second time in a year. How shameful
Elizabeth ever considered people with your attitude are why this country is burning. These are real people with businesses who provide jobs and help the economy.