Resident dies in Valley Stream house fire; firefighter hospitalized with head injury

A resident injured after a fire broke out at a Valley Stream home on Tuesday morning died, Nassau County Assistant Chief Fire Marshal James F. Hickman confirmed Tuesday afternoon.

Around 11:24 a.m., the Valley Stream Fire Department responded to a Keller Street residence after receiving a 911 call, according to Nassau County Chief Fire Marshal Michael Uttaro.

Uttaro said firefighters encountered a heavy fire in the basement and requested mutual aid.

One resident of the home was rescued by firefighters and taken to Nassau University Medical Center for treatment of critical burns, Uttaro said earlier Tuesday.

The male victim, who has not been identified, died around 2 p.m. at NUMC, Hickman said. The victim's cause of death will be determined by a medical examiner, he added.

A firefighter was injured on the scene and taken to Mount Sinai South Nassau Hospital for treatment of a head injury Uttaro said.

The injury was sustained after the firefighter "slipped and fell on the ice," Hickman said.

"That's part of the difficulty of dealing with a fire in subfreezing weather," he added.

The injured volunteer was "being observed and doing OK" as of around 4 p.m. Tuesday, Hickman said.

At least five other departments, or about 60 firefighters, helped get the fire under control within an hour, Uttaro said.

Uttaro said the house suffered heavy structural damage, and detectives are investigating the cause of the fire.