Fire photographer Ron Jeffers shared photos from the scene of a four-alarm fire in Bogota, New Jersey, that displaced scores of people on Super Bowl Sunday.
Firefighters from multiple departments responded on Sunday, February 9, 2025, to a three-story apartment building on Palisade Ave. to contend with a fire that raced through the structure’s cockloft.
Around 2 p.m., local volunteer fire companies were dispatched to the apartment house for a report of a fire in Apartment 9, according to Bogota Battalion Chief Alex Breuss. Engine company members stretched a line to the top floor as residents evacuated the structure.
“An aggressive effort was made for nearly an hour by all Bogota fire companies and our mutual aid partners,” according to a department Facebook post.
It became evident that the fire was rapidly racing through the structure’s cockloft. As conditions worsened, companies were ordered out of the structure. Fire broke through the roof and a partial roof collapse occurred.
Defensive operations included two ladder pipes and a deck gun on the Palisade Ave. side of the fire. Leonia Ladder Co. 1 backed in to a private home’s driveway on the north side of the building, maneuvered the aerial ladder around overhead power lines, and also set up a ladder pipe operation.
As heavy smoke traveled over the neighborhood, including nearby Interstate 80, additional mutual aid fire units were called to the scene along with EMS personnel. First responders set up a drone and observed roof conditions at the command post.
Mutual aid fire units that operated at the scene came from Ridgefield Park, Teaneck, Hackensack, Englewood, Leonia, Little Ferry, Fort Lee, River Edge, Bergenfield, Hasbrouck Heights, and South Hackensack.
The fire was declared under control at 5:05 p.m. It was reported that one resident was transported to a local hospital. Fire victims were assisted by the Bogota Volunteer Ambulance Corps. and the Red Cross.
The Bogota Fire Prevention Bureau, assisted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, is investigating the fire.
