Quick Action with Fire Extinguisher Stops Porch Fire on Maple Avenue in Westville

Westville, NJ - Prompt intervention by residents with a fire extinguisher prevented major structural damage Saturday night after a fire ignited beneath the front porch of a home on Maple Avenue.

At approximately 9:46 p.m. on September 12, 2026, Westville Fire Department Taskforce 7 was dispatched to Maple Avenue following reports of an active dwelling fire located under an exterior front porch.

A full structural response was initiated, bringing command officers Chief 701, Deputy Chiefs 702 and 802, and Battalion 5, alongside apparatus including Engines 733, 812, and 3443, Gloucester City Fire Department (GCFD) Squad 5, Westville Ladder 736, and West Deptford (WD) Ladder 6.

Westville Engine 733 was first to arrive on scene and reported that the home's occupants had already discharged a portable fire extinguisher onto the flames, knocking down the bulk of the fire. The engine crew deployed a pressurized water can to thoroughly soak the affected timbers and extinguish remaining embers.

Mutual aid crews aboard GCFD Squad 5 and WD Ladder 6 conducted thermal imaging and physical overhaul around the porch decking and adjacent residential framing to confirm the fire had not extended into the structure. Due to the rapid alert and immediate homeowner action, property damage was kept to an absolute minimum.