Officials: Two guests burned in fire at Bethpage motel

An early-morning fire Friday apparently caused by "careless smoking" injured two guests at a Bethpage motel, damaging rooms and prompting an evacuation of the two-story structure, fire officials said.

The blaze at the Bethpage Motel on Hempstead Turnpike was reported in a 911 call at 3:44 a.m.

About 60 firefighters from Bethpage, Farmingdale, South Farmingdale and Wantagh responded to the scene to find the second-floor room ablaze, Nassau Assistant Chief Fire Marshal Michael Uttaro said.

Photos from the scene show firefighters, under the direction of Bethpage Assistant Chief Kevin Isernia, getting a hose on the second-floor outdoor landing as flames pour from a door and lap against the underside of the roof overhang.

A burning mattress that was removed from the room also is pictured in the motel parking lot.

Uttaro said the two injured were occupants of the room and were treated at Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow for burns to the hands and chest. He said the injuries were considered minor.

Most of the major damage was limited to the room where the fire originated, Uttaro said, though some adjacent rooms sustained minor smoke, water and fire damage.

The fire is being considered accidental. "The cause appears to be careless smoking," Uttaro said, adding the room had a working smoke detector that was activated during the blaze.

"It had a lot of potential [for major damage]," Uttaro said of the fire. "But a quick response and a great job of containing the fire led to a good outcome."

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”