Lynne Citron, Theresa Casale identified as two fatalities in Plainview senior complex fire 

A woman who was critically burned in a senior housing complex fire Sunday in Plainview has died, the second fatality attributed to the blaze that also sent two people to the hospital and displaced several others. 

Nassau County police said Lynne Citron, 74, who was taken to Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow with severe burns, succumbed to her injuries later Sunday. Earlier, police confirmed complex resident Theresa Casale, 84, was found dead by firefighters in Building 107 of the Harmon Shepherd Hill apartments on Central Park Road in Plainview.

Officials said both women were discovered in the same second-floor apartment, which Plainview Assistant Fire Chief Andrew Cohen said was across the hall from the apartment where the fire originated. It was unclear which of the women lived in that apartment.

Their families could not be reached for comment.

Police and fire officials said the fire was reported in a 911 call at 5:07 a.m. Sunday.

Firefighters and police were able to quickly evacuate the 10-unit building, but said seven other residents were evaluated at the scene for injuries and two were hospitalized.

Late Monday, officials with the Town of Oyster Bay Housing Authority, which operates the apartments, said in a statement the “building damaged by the fire has 20 units and was occupied by 21 residents.”

On Monday morning, a screeching, persistent ring of Building 107’s dying smoke alarm could be heard throughout the apartment complex community, more than 24 hours after the fire tore through the second-floor roof.

From the parking lot, a gaping hole allowed for a view clear through the building's second floor. Burned debris lay scattered on the fenced front lawn.

A single bouquet of lilies and hydrangeas was anonymously left tied to the fence.

“The guys are taking it hard,” Cohen said Monday after learning a second victim had died. “It's just horrible. It was a tough, tough battle fire-wise. A lot of people are taking it pretty hard. Obviously, you want to save everybody. It's what we do. We give up everything to save a life. And to not save a life, well … it's a devastating blow to the crews who were out there working.”

Cohen said about 80 to 100 firefighters from Plainview, Syosset, Jericho, Bethpage, Farmingdale, South Farmingdale, Hicksville, Levittown and Melville responded to the scene.

He said firefighters were able to pull an unconscious woman from the fire. She was taken to Plainview Hospital, where she is expected to make a full recovery.

Cohen said when the roof suffered a partial collapse, it landed on two Plainview firefighters — Dylan Harris and Cohen's son, Brandon Cohen. He said the two were pulled out of the debris by fellow firefighter Eric Rivera, who is a former Plainview chief.

“It was a scare,” Andrew Cohen said. “But it's all good now.”

“This was probably one of the most difficult calls you have,” Cohen said. “An occupied, multiple-unit dwelling, wood construction, residents who are seniors. It was a difficult challenge.”

Resident Rosemary Traynor, who has lived in the adjacent building since 2011, said the “massive” flames were taller than the surrounding trees. The lingering odor is still in her clothes, she said.

“I was out this morning at church, I wore another coat because this one smells so badly,” Traynor said.

Regina Palumbo, 76, who lives in a first-floor apartment in the building adjacent to Building 107, said she was awakened by a call from a neighbor in another building, warning her of the fire.

As she was leaving, the hallway was full of smoke, she said. Thinking the fire was in her building, Palumbo took action.

“I yelled in the hall to everybody,” she said. “I went out and just rang everybody's bell.”

The flames coming out of Building 107 were so big that they lapped at her windows, making her wonder if her apartment would burn down.

“I got scared,” Palumbo said. “I have a lung problem. I couldn’t breathe. It was just too much.”

Aside from one woman in her 80s who is temporarily staying in their building, Palumbo and Traynor said they don’t know where surviving residents are taking shelter. They described the complex as a community in which residents look out for one another.

“We’re a family here,” Palumbo said. " We’re always together, if you need help, we're here to help you.”

The Oyster Bay Town Housing Authority said late Monday that “all residents who were unable to stay with family were placed in housing at the expense of the TOBHA. … All residents will be relocated to and placed in TOBHA apartments until the affected building is renovated.”

The authority added: "At this time, it is expected that the portion of the building affected by the fire will be rebuilt in kind and that the rest of the structure will be remediated and renovated. It does not have to be knocked down. … it is expected that the renovation work will be completed in less than 12 months.”

Nassau Assistant Chief Fire Marshal James Hickman said Monday the cause of the fire remains under investigation. Police Homicide and Arson Bomb Squad detectives also are investigating, as is procedure in any fire involving a fatality.

With Nicholas Spangler