Residents Displaced by Edgewater Fire Try to Reclaim Belongings

An agreement of sorts has finally been worked out to try to find and save personal belongings from a massive apartment complex fire in Edgewater, New Jersey in January.

More than 200 units of the AvalonBay complex were either destroyed by fire or demolition of the remaining structure.

Former resident Heather Jackson has led an online petition campaign to get as much access as possible to the debris when removal begins Friday. But she said AvalonBay executives have made it clear there will be no access, and limited opportunity to save anything.

"If it were their house that burned down, they would probably want to be involved in that process," Jackson said. 

But the company wrote to residents, "We believe that, after taking into account exposure to fire, water and weather, only a small portion of the original contents will ultimately be salvaged for reclaim."

Still, company executives met Wednesday afternoon with Mayor Michael McPartland and Bergen County Executive Jim Tedesco to iron out the last details of what can and will be saved.  

There will be cameras to take video of the removal work as a security measure, but to the dismay of former residents, the definition of what is a "personal" item that will be saved will be up to the contractor.

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