Jersey Shore business group replaces boots stolen from firefighter’s car

RED BANK — A Jersey Shore business group stepped up to replace a pair of boots stolen from a firefighter's vehicle as he fought a fire.

The volunteer with Sea Bright Rescue responded to Thursday's fire on Leonard Street in  Red Bank that destroyed a two-story home and left a family of five without a home. Squads from Middletown and Fair Haven also responded to the fire.

A picture posted by the Sea Bright Fire Rescue on their Facebook page  they said showed a person removing the the firefighter's regular work boots from his personal car as he fought the blaze caught the attention of Alan Richer, a member of the Red Bank Alliance who owns a store called Hobbymasters.

"I reached out to (members) and it didn't take long to raise the money to replace the boots," Richer said, adding that they gave the firefighter the money to replace the boots because there is no longer a store that sells boots in downtown Red Bank. "You came and helped us and we're not letting you leave shoeless," Richer said.

Richer, who serves on the Alliance's parking committee, said the firefighter also volunteers in Shrewsbury.

Red Bank Fire Marhshal Stanley Sickels told Red Bank Green that four firefighters were injured fighting what he called  a "dangerous fire" fueled by a hoarding situation. The news site said that one member of the family was injured when he jumped out a window.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com.

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