An early morning fire destroyed a tent in tent city today, but nobody was injured, police confirmed. At about 6:00 AM, police and firefighters responded to the homeless camp on Cedarbridge Avenue and found a tent on fire. The occupant(s) made it out uninjured and the fire was extinguished before it could spread further.
The cause of the fire is unknown at this time.
At least one past fire at the camp started from a propane tank used to heat a tent.
The Fire Marshal’s office responded to the scene. TLS-CCP/Lakewood Shopper.
How much more r we going to waste
gooooood job cookie
there ia a fire there every day whats the news?
Before everyone starts jumpimg on tent city again lets not forget that we have fires in lakewood homes and businees too. That is why we have a fire department. So please do not start with the tent city bashing again.
Well said #3. I was going to say something along those lines!
Until the government starts to care, which it won’t, about the homeless and actually finds them some where to live, then at least they are no longer on store fronts and in town square sleeping. Unless, you, the people, are willing to take them in, then don’t complain about tent city. They are off the road, in the woods, out of peoples sight. Unless you know it is there, then you don’t see it.
To #4: “… we have fires in lakewood homes and businees too” the difference is these homes and businesses pay TAXES. And to #5: for that exact reason it is MY business. I am one of the people supporting the fire department, garbage pick-up etc. with the taxes I pay unlike the residents in “tent city”.
The township ADMIN/POLICE/FIRE/ officials could be tied up in potential litigation. If one of these fires breaks out, and a death occurs; the victims family could stand up and sue the township for allowing the dangerous conditions to go on, which resulted in the death.
township officials, don’t think your inaction is not noticed! REMEMBER PEOPLE VOTE BASED UPON PRIOR ACTIONS/INACTION- not campaign promises!
to #5 – get your facts straight, the “residents” of tent city were offered proper housing (weather it was in a motel sponsored by the government or a genuine apartment) and the residents refused this offer.
The whole stretch of Cedar Bridge Ave along the woods reeks of burning wood fires night after night. It is surprising that the woods have not been completely burned down yet. Maybe this is due to the wet weather we have had this year. Just wait until there is a dry spell.
What kind of foolishness is this? There are zoning laws, and fire codes for a reason! Sure fires can occur anywhere, but you have to plan and be responsible.
To # 6 What about the schools and religious properties that do not pay taxes ? Do you have a problem supporting the fire department and gargabe pick-up for them?
To # 8: You are the one that needs to get your facts straight. Stop believing all the garbage you are being feed and look at the real facts.There are two lawsuits currently pending in Ocean County Court.The residents of Tent City are suing the county for not providing proper services and facilities for the homeless and the Atlantic City Resue Mission is suing the county for 2 million dollars for the costs off taking care of the homeless that Ocean County has been sending to them. Do you think that Tent City would exist and these lawsuits would have any merit if the county was doing all that they are trying to make you believe thay are doing?
#11 – im not a teacher, but i can tell you SCHOOL RAISE AND TEACH OUR FUTURE PRESIDENTS!! you cant tax, and hurt schools, the poor teachers are funding many of the supplies out of pocket as it is. (the schools are scraping because principals are getting $100k+ but thats a whole other issue)
-TENT CITY ISN’T CONTRIBUTING TO SOCIETY IN ANY WAY. THEY ARE NOT RAISING KIDS, THEY ARE RAISING FREELOADERS.
-A GOOD SCHOOL RAISES PROPERTY VALUES, BRINGS IN NEW HOME OWNERS & BUYERS. a tent encampment lowers values, and scares people away. SO DONT EVEN TRY TO COMPARE!
To Mr. Conservative: Please get your facts straight before making your negative comments. The Township filed a lawsuit last year in court to have Tent City closed. The lawsuit is still going on. The court will make the decision on closing Tent City. So please stop with your blaming the township for inaction.
I hear Cookie is Firefighter of ther year, yah, !!!!!
Let’s make the lag baomer fires in tent city & due away with the permit hassles
To Mr. Conservative: There are many people in Tent City that contributed to society prior to being homeless. So now that they cant contribute at this time you want toss them out to the streets. You are are very sad person Mr. Conservative.
#14 – forget the courts, we already have local ordinances!
we have county wide fire marshal regulations, that are being broken.
we have rules and regulations and township ordiances right here in lakewood, on the books. that could be enforced!
i dont care who in tent city is suing who- doesnt give any evidence of wrong doing on the townships behalf!
TO #17
idk, maybe im wrong BUT THEY ALREADY LIVE ON THE STREETS!!!
how could i be so heartless and toss a person who lives in the woods on the streets? that doesnt even make sense!
all im saying is there are options they are failing to take. county sponsored housing & job placement assistance.
or
dont comply with the local laws->receive tickets->not pay them->and go to jail. thats it.
BOTH ARE BETTER THEN YOU WANTING TO LEAVE THEM IN THE FREEZING WOODS(streets)!!
To Mr. Conservative: Do you live in Lakewood NJ.??? There are no schools in this town that have made my property value go up. There is no one that I know that ever moved to Lakewood for the school system
Please provide all of us with the names of these wonderfull schools that have made are property values increase.
#20 – “There are no schools in this town that have made my property value go up.”
Are you brain-dead? how many people have moved to lakewood for the yeshiva’s?? Lakewood is one of the hubs of Orthodox Judaism and is home to one of the largest yeshivas in the world.
Did you forget about georgian court university??
Lakewood is a sought after place to live by hasidics. if it was not for all these schools, lakewood would have been another TrashRiver, Bricktucky, Howellabama, Jacksonville.
To Mr. Conservative You really do have a distorted view of Tent City .You make a lot of commemts about what goes on there (ordinances and codes being broken) Maybe you should contact them and get a tour of the camp and find out what really goes on there.There are fire marshalls and code inspectors there all the time.
It Is not a great place to live but believe me it beats living on the streets of Lakewood. There are many many people that are not like you that help them with food, blankets and clothing on a daily basis and will continue to help them untill the county builds a proper shelter for these people.
As for yor comment” forget the courts.” I remind you as you have been reminded before that we live in a country of democracy and not under a dictatorship as you comments seem to indicate that you prefer.
To Mr. Conservative : The Orthodox move hear because of they must live in an Orthodox community. If the yeshiva was the attraction then as with other universities in the US they would also be attracted to the surrounding towns .
As for Georgian Court; How many people do you know that moved to Lakewood because Georgian Court ishere . LETS GET REAL PLEASE!!!
#22 – MY GOD, DO YOU HAVE DISTORTED VIEW OF REALITY.
when i said “forget the courts,” i didnt mean close them down, never use them again, or that im against the court system.
i simply meant: “im not concerned with the legal proceeding’s currently going on- thats a different topic. just because someone is suing someone, doesn’t mean anyone holds any guilt or responsibility. ”
and just to make myself clear. i dont blame anyone for becoming homeless. it can happen to just about 99% of us. i blame them for staying that way, and wanting to be that way. there are plenty programs, menial jobs, and ways to get out of being homeless.
Secondly, i dont mind citizens pitching a tent on government owned land(since government is run BY the people- its everyone’s) and staying a little bit. I DO HAVE A PROBLEM WITH OPEN FLAMES & TAX MONEY BEING USED FOR TRASH, ETC. if you want to live “off the grid” – then do so, and dont rely upon “on-grid” services.
IF YOU WANT TO LIVE NOT PAYING TAXES, FREELY, NOT HAVING TO ANSWER TO SOMEONE, OR RELY UPON GOVERNMENT… thats fine, to each his own- BUT WHEN YOU START COSTING TAX PAYERS MONEY, AND USING SERVICES YOU DONT WANT TO PAY FOR OR PLACING PEOPLE AND PROPERTY IN JEOPARDY- THATS WHEN I HAVE PROBLEMS. THAT HYPOCRITICAL LIFE STYLE (i want to be free, and not rely upon government, yet i rely upon government for trash removal & emergency services)
#23 your VERY wrong!
YOU WROTE: “The Orthodox move hear because of they must live in an Orthodox community. If the yeshiva was the attraction then as with other universities in the US they would also be attracted to the surrounding towns”
-You cant compare Orthodox students/devout followers, to “other universities” & religions. ORTHODOX JEWISH PEOPLE HAVE TO WALK IN CERTAIN TIMES OF THEIR RELIGION. and moving into a surrounding town would pose a ridiculous burden upon the faithful.
SO YES, THEY MUST LIVE IN LAKEWOOD, BECAUSE OF THE YESHIVA’S- SO THAT DRIVES THE NEED/DESIRE FOR HOMES IN LAKEWOOD. Supply & demand my friend!
Supply and demand is an economic model of price determination in a market. GLAD YOU LEARNED SOMETHING TODAY.
Mr Conservative for Governor!!
Mr Conservative for Mayor!
Please run for any township position. you say things others dont dare address. we need a voice like you in town!
How many people moved to Lakewood because the homeless were here?
How many people did not move to Lakewood because the homeless are here?
What have they contributed to Lakewood?
Do they make any attempt to become productive citizens?
How long can we afford to pay the expense of the homeless people in the woods, when there are alternatives?
Is it fair to the homeless to allow them to reside in the woods?
Is it fair to the tax paying residents?
Winter is rapidly approaching, and it is likely that this will not be the last fire at tent city. It is time that the Township and County took more aggressive action to save them from themselves.
i love how im made into a big bully, by people who want to leave the homeless out in the cold.
im advocating removing them and pretty much forcing them into either subsidized housing & job placement- with the eventual release back into society, or jail- BOTH OF WHICH will take them off the streets, and give them a warm place to sleep and tools to get off the streets.
but the people calling me a big-bad-bully stating i want to throw them out on the streets ARE ADVOCATING LEAVING THE HOMELESS IN THE COLD WET WOODS. you can throw homeless people on the streets! BECAUSE THEY ALREADY ARE ON THE STREETS!
people who want to live off the grid, (there are plenty earth-freaks out there today) who want to live “off the land” and dont want to be taxed, or follow rules- are fine by me. everyone can live how they want to. but if you choose to live off the grid, then stay off the grid. dont use township services, follow all rules & laws to stay low-key.(no fires, structures, etc)
THESE PEOPLE ARE THE EQUIVALENCE OF THAT CO-WORKER/FRIEND WHO CLAIMS TO QUIT SMOKING, YET ALWAYS BUMS OFF OF HIS FRIENDS. (by “quit smoking” – he really meant he stopped buying his own, and now smokes for free by mooching of others)
all i can say is thank goodness no one was hurt and the occupants were able to get out of the tent in time.
as for the rest of the comments, as long as they’re not bothering or hurting anyone i dont see what the big deal is. and complaining about the garbage pickup is a ridiculous comment. besides the dozens upon dozens of tax exempt properties that dont pay taxes and still get their township funded services ( such as schools, churches, synagogues, parsonages, etc.) these people in tent city take better care of the woods than most tax-payers in the town take care of their own houses!
leave the poor people be- they have enough hardship to deal with. unless no one else has anything better to do with their lives than to bash people in unfortunate situations on the internet…
To #29 Mr. Conservative
I hope that you do not think that I was bashing you, because I respect everyone’s opinion. I merely believe that the homeless people are that for a reason that we may net even be able to guess.
We do know that most of the homeless are impaired some way or another. Their impairment sometimes becomes an impediment to their own safety and the safety of others. This is when others need to take a stand and get the appropriate help that is needed.
You appear to be a very concerned and responsible resident that understands that “There but for the grace of G-D goes I”.
Be well, and let us all be thankful for our health.
I am tired of you people thinking that its easy to get social services to help put these people up. I tried that when I was homeless and they told me because I am getting too much in child support every month they can’t help me and because I have a child there are no shelters I can go to….. SO TO ALL YOU PEOPLE SAYING THEY CAN GET A PLACE TO LIVE ITS ALL SIMPLE YOU DON”T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE SYSTEM.
Bill hobday, I was addressing the lunatics who made me into a bully by saying I want to kick homeless people on the street(And failing to see they infant ARE on the street already)! All I want is for them to be out of the cold and no longer a danger to themselves and the people of lakewood. It’s gonna be sad day if heaven forbid they start a large forest fire and a poor fireman gets hurt fighting the blaze. What people don’t understand is allowing people to “live off the land” is great if they have all the tools and skills needed. Living in a tent- basically camping; isn’t normal. These people have addictions and mental problems. Turning a blind eye and saying your not bothering them so your a good person is the worst you can do!
To Mr Conservative: Boo Hoo You are breaking my heart. Are you now trying to convince us that you are trying to help the homeless by posting hateful comments. Yeah Right
Mr conservative, you seem to have alot to say about everything, if you had that much energy, you should be out there trying to help the unfortunate, there are also many vets there, let me ask you something sir, did you serve your country,,,mmmm didn’t think so, your facts are not even close to being correct, or godly, hope yoou don’t end up being homeless someday
TO #35
YOU WROTE: “did you serve your country,,,mmmm didn’t think so, your facts are not even close to being correct”
– ITS YOUR FACTS THAT ARE NOT CORRECT!
Many moons ago, I served in the US ARMY, 42nd Infantry Division, 50th Brigade Combat Team.
what a hypocrite! you judge what you dont know, make false claims about me like you actually know me, and tell me i am bad person for speaking my opinion!? shame on you.
AND LEARN TO SPELL! ITS ANONYMOUS, not “anonymus”. FOOL!
So back to this tent that burned down….
To Mr Conservative: *what a hypocrite! you judge what you dont know*
Your statement decribes you more than anyone else on this site.
The fire was not at Tent City The fire was behind the SIngin at a tent that someone put up a few yards from rhe sidewalk. The Tent has been plainly visible for months.
where do you get your facts? It says in the article that is was a tent city tent. If it was not please enlighten TLS so they can update the article.
TLS Why are you not updating the article and giving the correct location of the fire?