People on the boardwalk in Seaside Park who were the first to see the flames two weeks ago tried to put out the fire themselves.

Post-Seaside Heights boardwalk fire
Post-Seaside Heights boardwalk fire (Peter Smith)
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"Uh there's a fire on the boardwalk in Seaside ... underneath the boardwalk, you can't see the flames, but there's smoke," said one caller who called 911 reveals audio of the calls according to WNBC TV.

The flames, according to an investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office, started in an inaccessible nest of wiring under the boardwalk that had been damaged by salt water and sand after Superstorm Sandy.

50 businesses were burned by the flames that charred 4 blocks of the boardwalk from Seaside Park to Lincoln Avenue in Seaside Heights.

"We got the hose on there ... Oh my God, you guys gotta come quick! It's going from nothing to something," another caller told 911. The dispatcher told callers that firefighters were enroute and that they should stay away.

Seaside Park firefighters were the first to respond. Seaside Heights Police Chief Tommy Boyd put the call out for help as the flames grew in intensity with over 400 firefighters responding.


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