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.
Playland Castaway Cove rides safe after Ocean City boardwalk fire
Published: January 31, 2021
A fire was contained to a building at Playland Castaway Cove on Saturday (JiLLy’s Stores via Facebook)
OCEAN CITY A boardwalk landmark pirate ship is all but gone while the rides it towered over are safe, following a four-alarm fire in the Playland Castaway Cove arcade building on Saturday.
In addition to the larger-than life ship installation with its enormous pirate and parrot, the arcade and three business offices had suffered sizable damage as of Sunday. The fire also ripped through Hamburger Construction Company, Dairy Queen and BrumeJuice, according to Brian Hartley, Vice President of Playland Castaway Cove.
There were no immediate reports of injuries and crews are dousing the flames to extinguish the fire. Firefighters controlled the blaze shortly before noon, Ocean City Fire Department spokesperson Doug Bergen said to NBC.
He said there does not appear to be any structural damage to the boardwalk, though further inspections will be needed.
The owners of Playland s Castaway Cove said they promise to rebuild the amusement park that has operated on the Ocean City Boardwalk for more than 60 years. We struggle to comprehend this mornings events and what will be of the next few months, but we can assure you this, WE WILL REBUILD!! a statement posted to Playland s Facebook page read. We have a secondary entrance that will now be our main entrance for the foreseeable future. We will be open sooner rather than later!
Four-alarm fire damages Ocean City boardwalk; Playland Castaway Cove owners vow to rebuild inquirer.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from inquirer.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Fire rages at Ocean City boardwalk amusement park
The fire erupted about 7:40 a.m. at Playland Castaway Cove on the boardwalk.
The fire ripped through the amusement park s arcade and office building as well as Hamburger Construction Co. restaurant and the Dairy Queen, fire officials said. The buildings were not occupied at the time of the fire.
The boardwalk itself appears to have been spared, although officials said they would inspect further. There were no reported fire-related injuries.
In a message shared after 10:30 a.m., the amusement park said it would reopen sooner rather than later.
At around 10:30, the fire appeared to be contained. Ladders were dousing the smoking embers of the Playland building next to the amusement rides.