OCEAN CITY – Firefighters on the Ocean City Boardwalk were fighting a monster blaze Saturday morning, as plumes of orange flame and thick, black smoke poured from the front building of Playland’s Castaway Cove.
The owners of the park are already vowing to rebuild.
An Ocean City police officer at the scene said he had not heard about any injuries in the massive fire, the smoke from which could be seen from throughout Ocean City and was visible from as far away as Stone Harbor.
This was later confirmed by city officials, who said no one was in the building when the fire started. Responders will be assessed for any injuries related to extreme cold. At least one person was seen to slip on the ice that built up on a sidewalk.
The initial call came in at 7:40 a.m. Firefighters found the fire quickly spreading through a structure that includes Playland’s Castaway Cove arcade and offices, the Hamburger Construction Company and Dairy Queen.
By 10 a.m., firefighters appeared to have made progress in getting the blaze under control, but it looked likely crews had a long day ahead before the fire was completely out. The cleanup seemed likely to take far longer.
“As of late Saturday morning, the fire was under control, but firefighters remained on the scene working to fully extinguish the blaze,” reads a statement from Ocean City spokesman Doug Bergen. “A west wind fueled the fire but likely spared neighboring buildings. Required structural firewalls between properties also worked effectively.”
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
“The building suffered extensive damage. There does not appear to be structural damage to the boardwalk, but this will be subject to further inspection. Full access to this block of the boardwalk will be restored only as conditions allow, and people are encouraged to avoid this area until the response is over,” read the statement released Saturday morning.
By 10 a.m., firefighters appeared to have made progress in getting the blaze under control, but it looked likely crews had a long day ahead before the fire was completely out. The cleanup seemed likely to take far longer.
A steady wind fanned the flames, and carried the smoke out over the beach and toward the ocean.
A small crowd gathered on the beach and along the boardwalk, as police erected barricades and sought to keep them at least a block away from the fire.
“All Ocean City fire, police and public works units were on recall as a three-block perimeter was established to fight the fire,” Bergen wrote. “The Marmora Volunteer Fire Department, Longport Volunteer Fire Department, Margate Fire Department, Somers Point Fire Department, Tuckahoe Volunteer Fire Company, Seaville Volunteer Fire Company and Strathmere Volunteer Fire Company provided mutual aid, along with police units from Sea Isle City, Egg Harbor Township, Longport, Linwood and Northfield, rescue squads from AtlantiCare and Upper Township, and the Cape May County Regional Urban Search Team (RUST).”
From a distance, the fire appeared to be centered at Playland’s Castaway Cove on the boardwalk side, where there is an arcade with offices upstairs. The building is at 1020 Boardwalk. Behind the offices are the amusement park rides.
No estimate of the extent of the damages was immediately available on Saturday morning, nor was any information on the cause of the blaze.
Playland has been a Boardwalk landmark for years. Both at the scene and online, multiple people described the blaze as watching part of their childhood burn.
In a statement posted to Playland’s Facebook page, the owners thanked the community for their concern and promised the amusement would be back.
“To our family and loyal guests, we thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers during this difficult time. We would like to thank all of the first responders for their hard work and pray for their continued safety throughout today’s events,” reads the statement.
“We struggle to comprehend this mornings events and what will be of the next few months, but we can assure you this, WE WILL REBUILD!!” the post continued. “We have a secondary entrance that will now be our main entrance for the foreseeable future. We will be open sooner rather than later! For now, hug your loved ones, pray for the first responders and know that we will be back in the spring of 2021!”
