Crews respond to house fire in Cumberland County on Thursday afternoon

No injuries were reported after a house fire on Green Ridge Road in Silver Spring Township kept Cumberland County crews on scene for more than three hours Thursday afternoon. Firefighters were called at 12:24 p.m., and the blaze was marked under control by 1:13 p.m., but crews stayed until about 3:45 p.m. because of blown-in insulation, according to New Kingstown Fire Company. Officials said they believe the fire started outside the home.

The response underscored how quickly a neighborhood call can turn into a long cleanup operation even when flames are knocked down within the first hour. Crews remained at the property while they worked through insulation and checked the home for lingering hot spots, keeping the road and nearby residents tied to the scene well into the afternoon.

The fire also landed in a county that has already been through several severe blazes in recent months. In Millville, a separate house fire in the 100 block of North 4th Street left an adult dead in April 2025, and investigators said that blaze did not appear suspicious. Another Millville fire that month destroyed six homes, displaced 23 residents, and led to the recovery of the bodies of two children, ages 9 and 13. Officials said a gas line rupture intensified that fire, and firefighters had to run about 800 feet of hose to reach the nearest working hydrant.

Cumberland County also faced a major wildfire that spring in the Peaslee Wildlife Management Area near Vineland, where the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said about 1,200 acres burned and the blaze reached about 75% containment. During that response, state Sen. Mike Testa said the fire was not threatening major infrastructure, homes, schools or hospitals, a reminder that the county’s fire risk has extended well beyond isolated house calls.