After a Fourth of July celebration, a four-alarm fire ripped through The Balcony restaurant and lounge at 491 Broad St. early Sunday morning.
"The building was locked up at 2:50 a.m., and the fire started inside the attic located above the VIP section," Sgt. John Cleary of the Carlstadt Police Department said of the fire, which was reported at 3:25 a.m. "A neighbor who was walking their dog in the area called it in."
The rear area of the roof had collapsed over the dance floor, Cleary said. The charred smell wafted across the street as a DPW sweeper cleaned up debris and glass from the intersection while PSE&G worked on a utility line. Twenty towns responded, including Moonachie, Waliington, East Rutherford and Wood-Ridge. "The fire was coming through the roof, and we called a fourth alarm in," Deputy Fire Chief Henry Riveros said.