Homeless man's campfire sparks Atlantic City boardwalk fire, prosecutor says
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J (CBS) -- A 67-year-old man was killed in a fire that took over parts of the Atlantic City boardwalk for hours Thursday evening, Atlantic County prosecutors said.
Friday afternoon, officials revealed the fire that started under the boardwalk was near a small homeless encampment.
The 67-year-old man, identified as Bruce Elder, was asleep near the small campfire underneath the boardwalk while the fire spread upwards damaging the boardwalk and arcade above, officials said.
"We got a lot of water damage, smoke damage, and the back storage is gone," said Raul Coreas, the manager of Central Pier Arcade. "I'm not sure if we'll be able to open up for the summer."
Atlantic City officials said while the fire was intentionally set, it doesn't appear to be a criminal act.
The Atlantic City Fire Department said the fire started under the boardwalk near South Tennessee Avenue just after 7 p.m.
More than 50 firefighters responded and worked for hours to get the fire under control. All of the businesses on the pier were closed when the fire broke out.
"We are very grateful for that because it could have been worse, so much worse, and we will take it one day at a time," said Patti Goldberg, who has worked at Central Pier Arcade for years. "You have to give kudos" to the firefighters, she said.
While a lot of work needs to be done, those who work on the pier said they were grateful there were no injuries.
"Thank God no one was there. Everything is fine. It is material, so just try to rebuild and move on," Coreas said.
City officials said several fires have started under the boardwalk in recent months, and public works crews are removing debris from homeless encampments on a daily basis.
"Including one just down the boardwalk where we discovered a six-bedroom apartment under the boardwalk equipped with circuit breakers and more, so it's a big problem here," said Mayor Marty Small Sr.
Small added that a homeless division and a boardwalk improvement group have been established to address the issue that he said is plaguing the city.
"We're also focusing on Pacific and Atlantic avenues to deal with homeless people," Small said.
The investigation into Elder's death is pending an autopsy.