Two Burned in Trailer Explosion

OCEAN VIEW – Firefighters from Ocean View Fire Company were attending to a motor vehicle accident on Route 9 about 4 p.m. July 19 when an explosion in a trailer at Tamerlane Campground took place. They were dispatched and responded more quickly than otherwise might have happened.
Two victims were injured in the fire. A 59-year-old male was flown to Nathan Speare Regional Burn Treatment Center at Crozer-Chester Medical Center, Upland, Pa. A 52-year-old female was transported to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center City Campus. Their conditions were not available.
When the first responders arrived they found the trailer and two vehicles fully involved, according to Ocean View Fire Chief Joseph Gurdgiel.
The blaze was controlled in about 30 minutes, Gurdgiel said.
The company’s volunteers were already on a call, and had to remain there, so one engine and a tanker truck responded along with about nine volunteers, assisted by Dennis Volunteer Fire Co. Seaville firefighters were summoned to oversee the landing zone for the medical helicopter that flew the male victim to Pennsylvania. Sea Isle City firefighters were summoned to cover the station for Ocean View, he added.
Due to the severity of the blaze, Gurdgiel said the county Fire Marshal, County Prosecutor, county Fire Coordinator and New Jersey State Police from Woodbine station were summoned.
When the call was first dispatched, it was reported that a dwelling was involved. That was not the case, since it was a trailer, said the chief.
The call was the sixth of the day for Ocean View firefighters, he added. Other calls were for carbon monoxide alarm, a brush fire, and motor vehicle accidents. “They had a busy day,” Gurdgiel said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.