5 Long Island fires cause heavy damage to homes; no injuries reported

Three house fires broke out across Nassau County on Monday night, putting about 300 firefighters to work and causing significant damage to each home, Nassau County Chief Fire Marshal Michael F. Uttaro said.

Two fires were reported in Suffolk early Tuesday, as well.

No injuries were reported from any of the fires, but those in Nassau resulted in significant damage to the three homes, officials said.

Around 8:36 p.m., the Lawrence-Cedarhurst Fire Department was alerted to a fire at a two-story West Broadway residence in Cedarhurst. About 100 firefighters from the Inwood, Woodmere, Hewlett and Valley Stream fire departments provided mutual aid and brought the fire under control within 30 minutes, Uttaro said.

Then, around 8:41 p.m., the Long Beach Fire Department was called to a fire at a house on East Walnut Street, Uttaro said. About 100 firefighters from the Oceanside, Island Park, Point Lookout-Lido, Rockville Centre, Baldwin and Lynbrook fire departments put out the fire in about 90 minutes.

The lone occupant of the home was able to evacuate, Uttaro said.

Then, around 10:47 p.m., the Westbury Fire Department was alerted to a fire at a house on Pepperidge Road in Westbury. About 75 firefighters from the Hicksville, Carle Place, Mineola and Garden City fire departments assisted at the scene.

The fire was brought under control in about 45 minutes, Uttaro said. The two occupants of the house were evacuated.

All three fires were ruled accidental, Uttaro said. The fires in Cedarhurst and Westbury were deemed electrical fires and the Long Beach fire started in a clothes dryer and rapidly spread, he said.

None of the three fires were related, Uttaro said. But the Long Beach fire followed another house fire in Syosset Monday caused by a dryer fire that displaced 11 people.

"This time of year, you see an increase in fires during the heating season," Uttaro said.

Two fires also broke out in Suffolk County early Tuesday.

Around 3:30 a.m., a vacant house caught fire on Farmers Avenue in North Lindenhurst. Then, around 5:45 a.m., a shed at a residence on Wells Drive in Bay Shore ignited. The fires were brought under control and no injuries were reported.

Both fires appear to be noncriminal and the causes are under investigation, Suffolk County police said. 

With John Asbury