Brick Firefighters Douse Blaze at Large Home With Help of Residential Sprinklers

A house fire on Cedar Island Drive in Brick, N.J., May 8, 2025. (Credit: Roberta Staples Cartwright/ Facebook)

A house fire that may have grown – and potentially spread – quickly was extinguished by Brick firefighters after being kept under control by a residential sprinkler system, which is now required by law to be installed in some larger homes.

Firefighters were dispatched to the residence at 78 Cedar Island Drive Thursday morning at about 6:30 a.m. after a fire was reported, according to a statement from the township’s fire bureau. The first-arriving fire officer, Joseph Sansone, confirmed the fire, assumed the Incident Commander role and quickly upgraded the call to a second alarm, bringing the remaining Brick Township Fire Companies and additional mutual aid companies to the scene, according to Chief Kevin Batzel.

According to officials, the home was unoccupied and recently had reconstruction conducted at the property. During the reconstruction phase, a residential fire sprinkler system was installed. Two sprinkler heads activated on both the second and third floor bedrooms, which held the fire in check until the fire department arrived.

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Residential fire sprinklers are required in some larger-constructed or renovated homes such as the Cedar Island Drive residence. According to Batzel, the fire had extended from the lower exterior portion of the home and traveled upward until it broke through on the upper inside floors. The tank-fed residential sprinkler heads, which activated and slowed the fire’s spread throughout the home, also gave firefighters valuable time to extinguish the rest of the fire and minimize damage, he said.

The Brick Township Bureau of Fire Safety was requested to conduct an investigation. Assistant Fire Marshal Robert Kurilla was assigned to the incident and will conduct the investigation. Preliminary findings place the fire ignition area on the exterior of the home, Batzel said.

“Our firefighters did an excellent job in conjunction with our mutual aid partners,” said Batzel. “The Brick Township fire service would like to thank all of our mutual aid partners for their assistance on location and standing by for coverage assignments.”

In the statement, the fire bureau touted the benefits of residential sprinkler systems. Though smoke alarms are a “primary tool you can use to save lives as well as your property,” residential sprinkler systems are an additional resource and added layer of protection to preserve one’s home in addition to saving lives and minimizing damage.