NEW JERSEY — An eviction brawl ended in a massive and deadly fire in New Jersey after a woman refused to leave her home that sources say she shared with dozens of cats.
Police say officers attended Roosevelt’s home in Monmouth County after the woman received an eviction notice, but she refused to leave and threatened to blow up the Cedar Court home . Just after 11 a.m., police saw smoke billowing from the house, moments before it burst into flames.
Sources said the woman turned on the gas in the house and then struck a match. Several firefighters responded to the scene to extinguish the flames, but the woman did not survive, police said. No other person was injured.
Authorities said the flames were consistent with a natural gas fire. Emma Quackenbush, who lives in a house adjoining the one that caught fire, said her home was now “uninhabitable”.
The Roosevelt mayor said the landlord wanted to evict the woman, who had lived there for several years, in order to sell the house.
The woman loved animals and took care of other people’s animals. Neighbors said he may have had as many as 30 cats inside the house.
Animal control was on the scene, looking for any cats that might have escaped. They hadn’t found any by Wednesday afternoon, but said they would keep looking.