Eatontown Rental Claimed by Fire

Six fire companies responded to a house fire late Thursday afternoon that broke out in near Wycoff Road. The firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze, but not before it claimed the two-story rental home on Ruth Place.

According to Det. Lawrence Tyler of Eatontown's police department, officers responded to the scene at about 3 p.m. after a neighbor on Old Shark River Road called to report the smell of smoke. No one was home at the time of the fire.

Tyler said that a Monmouth County fire marshall responded and classified the fire as accidental, but was unable to determine an exact cause. The marshall did not rule out an electrical cause. The fire appears to have started in the basement and burned up through the first floor of the two story house.

Fire departments cleared the scene at about 6:30 p.m.

"I am unsure where the tenant will be be staying tonight," Lt. Tyler told Patch in an email Thursday.  "We attempted to put her in touch with the Red Cross, but it appears that she made her own arrangements. The house is uninhabitable."

Tyler said the following fire departments responded: , Tinton Falls and , Oceanpor Hook and Ladder, Port au Peck and Oakhurst.