Firefighters responding to initial reports of occupants trapped found the windows blown out and flames consuming the 1½-story wood-frame house on Jackson Avenue just after 6 p.m.
"I live 3 houses away. Heard an explosion of glass and ran outside and called 911," Gina Amelia Sasso wrote soon afterward. "House was up in seconds. It was so scary."
It took under an hour to knock down the main body of the blaze, which apparently broke out in the rear of the home. It was declared under control just after 7:30 p.m.
Authorities initially withheld information while notifications were made and a search for possible other victims continued.
"Three adults were pronounced deceased at the scene," Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes, Wayne Police Chief Jack McNiff and Wayne Fire Commissioner William Rodriguez said in a joint release. "More information will be released once it becomes available."
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