05/18/2026
16 dedicated Fire Company members spent 6+ hours of their Sunday to help control this fire that could have quickly spread. Thank you to Edison FD, East Brunswick FD, Middlesex FD, Metuchen EMS, Metuchen Police Department, Hackensack Meridian Medics, and Scott's Towing and Recovery for their support on the Metuchen side of the scene.
A couple of important updates on the Route 287 fire:
The southbound lanes of Route 287 should reopen within minutes. The northbound lanes, however, will remain closed as the investigation continues.
We have been working closely with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Middlesex County Hazmat officials to track any fuel runoff from the incident, and none of it has entered Metuchen. Any affected runoff areas are already being addressed by DEP crews, and officials do not expect any significant environmental impact.
I am also feeling incredibly grateful to the members of the Metuchen Fire Department. Shortly after flames spread to trees along Route 287 adjacent to the accident scene, our firefighters positioned themselves near the business area at the end of High Street and successfully prevented the fire from spreading further toward Metuchen. I truly cannot overstate how important that effort was in preventing an already very serious situation from becoming even worse for our community.
Thank you to all of the firefighters, police officers, EMS crews, OEM personnel, DEP and hazmat teams, and all of the mutual aid responders who continue to work this incident.
