Gas leak forces evacuation of East Meadow Stew Leonard's, police say

An East Meadow Stew Leonard’s grocery store was evacuated Wednesday after a gas leak, and one worker suffered minor injuries from carbon dioxide exposure, Nassau police said.

The East Meadow Fire Department was alerted shortly after 2 p.m. about an explosion inside the supermarket, located at 1897 Front St., according to Nassau County Assistant Chief Fire Marshal Michael F. Uttaro.

It was later determined that the refrigeration system had suffered a significant failure and was venting refrigerant into the store, Uttaro said.

"The explosion that was heard was determined to be from the system failing and venting the high-pressure refrigerant," he said.

One store employee was transported to Nassau University Medical Center after complaining of breathing difficulty, and medical personnel evaluated a second worker at the scene who refused further medical attention, officials said.

The East Meadow Fire Department requested assistance from departments in North Bellmore, North Merrick and the Nassau County Fire Marshal’s Hazardous Materials Response Team, which together evacuated the store of all employees, customers and fire personnel.

The hazardous materials team met with maintenance personnel from Stew Leonard's and learned that the store uses liquid carbon dioxide as a refrigerant, Uttaro said.

They then donned protective clothing, deployed specialized air monitoring equipment, and quickly confirmed the unsafe levels of carbon dioxide throughout the store, he said.

"The refrigeration equipment was accessed and all remaining carbon dioxide was vented from the system," Uttaro said. "The building was then ventilated and then rechecked several times until the atmosphere was determined to be safe."

The Fire Marshal's Inspection Office, Nassau Department of Health, Town of Hempstead Building Department and State Department of Agriculture and Markets will work with Stew Leonard management on a plan to reopen the store and ensure the food inside is safe for to sell.

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.