Former NJ Transportation commissioner, wife, die in house fire

MONTGOMERY, N.J. -- Authorities in Somerset County are investigating the deaths of a hospital CEO and his wife, after a fire in their home.

John Sheridan, 72, and his 69-year old wife Joyce died after flames broke out early Sunday morning in an upstairs bedroom at their home in Montgomery.

John Sheridan was president and CEO of the Cooper University Health System, based in Camden.

He once served as Governor Thomas Kean's Transportation Commissioner and chairman of the New Jersey Transit board, and also worked on the transition team of Gov. Christine Todd Whitman.

Authorities are trying to determine the cause of the fire.

In a joint statement announcing the Sheridans' deaths, George E. Norcross III, chairman of the hospital's board of trustees, and Adrienne Kirby, president and chief executive officer of Cooper Health System, called Sheridan "incredibly talented, wise and kind - a true gentleman in every sense of the word."

Gov. Chris Christie, on whose transition team John Sheridan had a role, said he was "shocked and deeply saddened" by the Sheridans' deaths. "John was an outstanding public servant, a leader in the healthcare industry and a true New Jersey treasure," Christie said in a statement. "Joyce was an outstanding teacher, wife and mother."

Camden Mayor Dana L. Redd said the couple "will both be profoundly missed by the entire Camden community."

Earlier in his career, he had served as deputy attorney general and was a general counsel for the New Jersey Turnpike Authority.