Playland fire on Ocean City boardwalk called accidental
The fire at the Playland Castaway Cove on the Ocean City boardwalk was ruled to have started accidentally, according to the preliminary findings.
The fire on the morning of Jan. 30 damaged the offices of the Hamburger Construction Co. restaurant, a Dairy Queen and a BrumeJuice, according to Brian Hartley, vice president of Playland Castaway Cove. Hartley said rides were spared but the park s trademark pirate ship and parrot were also damaged.
The fire started at an undetermined electrical source near the front of the building, according to a statement issued by Ocean City spokesman Doug Bergen. The investigators were able to use a pattern of fire alarms, eyewitness accounts, photos and videos, a detailed excavation of the site and examination of forensic evidence to determine the cause and area of origin for the fire and conclusively rule out other possible causes.
PHILADELPHIA George Flowers was walking to get his first cup of coffee Saturday morning when he looked out of the window of his 14th-floor condo and saw a massive black plume of smoke billowing over the boardwalk in Ocean City, N.J.
“I got onto Facebook Live as soon as I could,” Flowers, 67, said.