An estate attorney and the father of two girls killed in the fire April 9 on the 300 block of South 4th Street in Millville has secured a temporary ban on any demolition or similar work at the scene.
On July 3, Cumberland County Superior Court Judge James Swift signed an order blocking on-scene work for 120 days. The idea is to preserve potential evidence pending completion of any investigations, with the law firm representing the family intending to do its own analysis.
Attorney Melissa Baxter, representing the family, filed the request with the court May 28.
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The order was signed after representatives of the City of Millville, South Jersey Gas and Atlantic City Electric agreed to the request. One property owner, Centuolo Development LLC, also signed off on the order.
This order targets specific destroyed or badly damaged houses at 321 S. 4th St., 323 S. 4th St., 325 S. 4th St. and 327 S. 4th St.
The effects of the order are as follows.
Millville is not to demolish or in any way alter all fire hydrants in proximity to the “house of origin.” The city may carry out any customary tests.
Atlantic City Electric similarly is not to remove or alter the service lines running from utility poles to each house.
South Jersey Gas is under the same obligations for its lines to the identified properties. The order is not to affect work that might be needed on other lines in the neighborhood.
A fire on April 9, 2025 destroyed or badly damaged houses and killed two girls on the 300 block of South 4th Street in Millville. A state judge on July 3 ordered that no demolition or utility repairs be done in order to preserve any evidence. July 9, 2025.
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The two girls who died in the fire were Valery Marianna Cardona-Gomez and Gissel Samanta Cardona-Gomez. Their father is Jhon A. Rodriguez. They lived at 327 S. 4th St., according to court documents.
An April 9, 2025 fire destroyed or badly damaged houses, killing two girls, on South 4th Street in Millville. A state judge on July 3 ordered that no demolition or utility repairs be done in order to preserve evidence. These signs pre-date that order. July 9, 2025.
On June 26, an attorney for South Jersey Gas filed a response to the proposed consent order. It asked for the court to deny what it termed the family’s request for “unlimited access to critical public utilities in violation of well-established New Jersey law.”
No other party filed with the court any opposition, according to the case docket.
Joe Smith is a N.E. Philly native transplanted to South Jersey 36 years ago, keeping an eye now on government in South Jersey. He is a former editor and current senior staff writer for The Daily Journal in Vineland, Courier-Post in Cherry Hill, and the Burlington County Times.
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This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Major work barred by court for 120 days at South Millville fire scene