UPDATE: Officials search for cause of fire at East Brunswick bike shop

by Joshua Burd on Feb 2nd | Email

EAST BRUNSWICK -- Investigators are still trying to determine the cause of a fire Wednesday morning that damaged a Route 18 bicycle shop and its two neighboring stores, officials said.

Firefighters responded just before 6:50 a.m. to an alarm at Planet Bike, 1177 Route 18 South, police said. Callers reported seeing flames come through the roof; firefighters arrived to find the business engulfed in flames.

Crews from all three township fire districts responded and knocked down the fire in about an hour, said Richard Twomey, assistant chief of the Old Bridge Volunteer Fire Company.

The three-alarm blaze resulted in no injuries, but left heavy fire damage to Planet Bike and the attached shops, United Check Cashing and Asian Nails, Twomey said. He called the building a "total loss'' and said there was significant damage to inventory.

Firefighters initially had trouble locating fire hydrants under the snow piled along Route 18 South, he said.

Fire investigators spent hours at the scene Wednesday but were unable to determine the cause and the exact point of origin, Twomey said.

Fire Official John Talbot of East Brunswick Fire District 1 said the cause would remain undetermined unless new information surfaced.

Crews from Monroe Fire District 1, South River and Milltown responded to the township to cover vacant firehouses.