Two firefighters dead, five injured in cargo fire at New Jersey port

NEW JERSEY: An intense fire on a cargo ship in New Jersey killed two firefighters while five others sustained injuries, officials said on Thursday. 

The cargo ship named Grande Costa d’Avorio was packed with as many as 1,200 new and used vehicles docked at Port Newark, Reuters reported.

According to the statement issued by vessel operator Grimaldi Deep Sea, the incident took place at about 10:30pm EST on the 10th deck of the Italian-flagged ship on Wednesday. 

The blaze took over the 11th and 12th levels as the members of the Newark Fire Department responded, said Chief Rufus Jackson while speaking during a news conference.

He added that the firefighters working to extinguish the blaze were pushed back by the intense heat.

"Two firefighters were lost while backing out. Searches were initially made to recover the two firefighters and we were unable to do so," Jackson said.

Two firefighters who lost their lives in the incident were 49-year-old Wayne Brooks Jr and 45-year-old Augusto Acabou. The other five were taken to the hospital due to smoke and burn injuries.

"This is not a common fire for the city of Newark and the Newark firefighters," Jackson said. "It's a different type of fire, and they're still willing to put themselves on the line."

Port Newark is one of the largest ports in the US and the busiest on the Eastern seaboard. 

Grimaldi Deep Sea said that they were unaware of how the fire started, adding that there was not any fuel spill detected at sea. He further said that the ship is stable. 

The company stated that the cargo ship had cars, vans, rolling equipment, and 157 shipping containers apart from the crew. It added that the ship was not carrying electric cars or hazardous cargo aboard.