POINT PLEASANT BEACH, N.J. (AP) — Officials say 10 people are unaccounted for after a fire that destroyed a motel at the Jersey shore, killing three people.
The blaze at the Mariner’s Cove Motor Inn in Point Pleasant Beach was reported at about 5:30 a.m. Friday. The two-story wooden structure was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived.
Ocean County Prosecutor Joseph Coronato says three males died in the fire and eight other people were injured. Several of the injured suffered serious burns.
One of the injured is a woman who was rescued by firefighters after she holed up in a shower to escape the smoke and flames.
Coronato says the search and recovery phase of the investigation will continue until officials are certain they’ve accounted for the approximately 40 people who were registered at the motel.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
