By MADDY VITALE
A fire broke out at the Townsend Shoals condominium complex at 94th Street in Sea Isle City on Friday morning, causing an evacuation and leaving one condo damaged, authorities said.
There were no reported injuries. Capt. Anthony Garreffi, officer in charge of the Sea Isle Police Department, said a dryer caught fire in Unit 202.
The fire was confined to the one unit and the resident was not home at the time, Garreffi said. The unit will need to be repaired before it can be occupied again.
“We got a phone call that a fire was at Townsend Shoals,” Garreffi said of the 9 a.m. blaze. “When officers arrived, they observed smoke.”
Seven condos were occupied at the time of the fire and police safely evacuated them.
Garreffi said the fire did not spread for two main reasons – the complex’s fire suppression system and the quick response time of the Sea Isle Volunteer Fire Department.
“The fire suppression system at the Townsend Shoals complex is great,” Garreffi said. “The sprinklers knocked the fire down and then the fire department was able to finish the job. It didn’t turn into something bigger because of the fire suppression system and the response from the fire department.”
Sea Isle Fire Chief Bryan Moran was the first firefighter to arrive on the scene, Garreffi said.
Moran and several other Sea Isle firefighters were able to put out the blaze within a short period of time.
“There was a great response time by the fire department,” Garreffi noted. “They really turned out.”
Several neighboring fire companies responded to assist, including firefighters from Avalon, Strathmere and Ocean View.
