Debates this week for Hoboken, Bayonne, Secaucus
The Hudson Reporter newspaper group will host three debates for mayoral and council candidates this week. Then, we will post the video on our website.
The debates will give our readers a look at the character and thoughts of candidates in the upcoming Nov. 3 municipal elections in Hoboken, Bayonne, and Secaucus.
We’ll have serious questions and offbeat ones. There will also be stories in the newspaper about the debates.
Fire destroys Secaucus home
A three-alarm house fire broke out at 716 Third St. in Secaucus Saturday at around 11:45 a.m.
Preliminary evidence by the fire inspector indicates the fire, which broke out in the basement, was caused by an electrical problem, according to Secaucus Volunteer Fire Chief George Schoenrock.
There were no fatalities or major injuries to residents of the home or firefighters.
The home, however, sustained major damage. Although firefighters at the scene were able to contain the fire to the basement, the blaze led to the partial collapse of the basement ceiling and first floor of the house.
The family was unable to return to their home after the blaze was put out, Schoenrock said, and was being put up by the American Red Cross.
It took an hour for 46 Secaucus firefighters to get the blaze under control and the local department remained on the scene for about three hours.
Under a mutual aid agreement the town has with neighboring communities, fire fighters from Carlstadt, Lyndhurst, East Rutherford, and Rutherford also were on hand to assist the local department. Schoenrock said about 12 mutual aid firefighters helped extinguish the fire.
When the first floor gave way, a firefighter from Carlstadt nearly fell through to the destroyed lower level of the home. A Secaucus firefighter and another from Carlstadt caught him and were able to pull him up to safety. He was uninjured.
Another firefighter reportedly received minor injuries.
Fire departments from North Arlington, Arlington, and Moonachie were placed on stand by in firehouses throughout Secaucus to cover the town in case another fire emergency happened during the 3rd Street blaze.
Fire and rescue squads from Jersey City and Moonachie arrived to provide water and other relief to firefighters responding to the emergency.
“Our firefighters did an excellent job holding the fire to the basement to keep it from spreading to the rest of the building,” Schoenrock said. – E. Assata Wright
Suicide prevention organization opens
Every 16 minutes, someone in the U.S. commits suicide, according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. New Jersey has the lowest suicide rate in the nation. Still, suicide is the leading cause of death among New Jerseyans ages 15 to 24 and the fifth leading cause of death among people 24 to 44. To combat the problem, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention has opened a Northern New Jersey chapter. The chapter will serve residents in Hudson, Bergen, Passaic, Essex, Sussex, Morris, and Warren counties. The organization will bring suicide prevention initiatives to the region and raise awareness about the problem of suicide. For more information, visit www.afsp.org, or call 1-888-333-AFSP. (Please note, this toll free number is not a suicide prevention hotline.)