*REVISED*Prosecutor: Cause of Fatal Middletown House Fire a Cigarette and/or Lighting Implements

Four people failed to cheat death early Tuesday morning as they fell victim to a what authorities are saying is one of the worst house fires ever fought in Middletown.

The cause of the fire at 135 Statesir Place, in the Fairview section, was deemed "improper use and/or disposal of cigarettes or lighting material (such as matches or implements used to light a cigarette)," First Assistant Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher Gramiccioni said.

The "inception location — or where we believe the fire started — was a metal wastebasket that was located inside a spare bedroom on the first floor of the home," he added.

The lone survivor of five was homeowner Stephen Banovich, 63, patriarch of the family and and husband to Sheridan (Sherry) Banovich, 63, who was one of the four residents of the home killed in the blaze. The other three victims were: the couple's daughter, Deidre, 23; Deidre's boyfriend, Anthony Cadalzo, 25; and Denise Dusold, 60, Sheridan's sister.

"All were residents of the home," Gramiccioni said. "We don't know yet, nor do we want to speculate the locations of where people stayed within the home (or whose room in which the fire started)."

The fire, he added, escalated particularly quickly, fully engulfing the structure in no time. The Middletown Fire Department, according to its Deputy Fire Chief Andy Spears, does not operate on an alarm-based scale with which it measures severity of fires.

Six of the department's 11 fire companies responded lending to the presumption that it was a severe fire that some authorites were calling a six-alarm based on the response. However, if he had to rate it on an alarm scale, Spears said it would probably come in at a three-alarm, which is considered critically dangerous.

With the official dispatch call-time of the fire coming in at 3:03 a.m., via 9-1-1 by a neighbor, it was extinguished by 4, authorities said. Not long after that, officials, friends and strangers made their way to the scene to see if there was anything they could do.

"This is really bad — devastating," Mayor Tony Fiore told Patch, as he arrived at the site at about 7:30 a.m.

By roughly 8:40 a.m., the scene became calmer, although more somber, as only a few neighbors ventured out. One woman, who did not want to be identified, only told Patch that she had lived directly across the street for 12 years and returned when she heard the news to see if she could offer support. "I'm just devastated," she said.

The woman added that the neighbors had all agreed at the time not to comment any further on the family, but they were very distraught. Another just cried and shook her head in disbelief.

The fire-ravaged home was a two-story split-level residence at 135 Statesir Place, which, according to Monmouth County property deed records, is owned by "Stephen M. and Shreidan (stet) A. Banovich, husband and wife."

When the mayor arrived to "check on our firemen and make sure they hadn't been injured in fighting the fire," it had already been extinguished. But, "to see the damage up close is to know that it is just indescribably devastating. It's just so tragic," the mayor said from the scene early that morning.

Initially, authorities would not let anyone venture down the street and only aerial photos were taken by network news helicopters. "You really can't see how truly horrible it is in that footage," the mayor had added.

According to Spears, the fire was so hot that firefighters had to fight it "from the outside in," meaning that they could not get near or go inside the fully engulfed house. No damage was done to any other neighboring homes, "more than likely because there were fewer windows on the sides of the home and they just didn't give," Spears said. "The flames were shooting out of the front and rear windows and the fire was fully involved floor to ceiling."

"There appears to be a lot of investigative work to be done, so it makes perfect sense that authorities are keeping everyone at bay," Fiore said a few hours after the fire had been extinguished. "Out of respect for the victims, they did a very good job of sealing the area off."

The Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office is continuing the investigation in conjunction with the Middletown Police Department.

Responding this morning were the following Middletown fire companies: No. 1, River Plaza, Community, Belford Engine, Port Monmouth and Old Village.

Middletown first aid respondents were: Middletown, Leonardo and Lincroft companies.

Middletown Township Fire Department, with roughly 400 active members and 11 companies, is the largest all-volunteer department in the country and, some officials claim, the world.

Patch will soon have a story from unique perspective of the tragic incident.