Resident, 95, dies, 2 injured in Rockville Centre apartment fire, officials say

A resident of a senior housing development in Rockville Centre died Thursday after attempting to put out an early morning kitchen fire, and two residents and four police officers sustained minor injuries, the Nassau County Police Department said.

Firefighters found the victim, 95, whose identity had not been released late Thursday, in a second-floor unit at the Halandia Court apartments on North Centre Avenue, said Nassau County Chief Fire Marshal Michael F. Uttaro.

A total of 80 firefighters from Lakeview, Lynbrook, Malverne and Rockville Centre responded to the fire, which was reported at 7:12 a.m., Uttaro said.

Two occupants of a first-floor apartment became trapped and were rescued by firefighters, the fire marshal said, adding that both declined medical attention.

Four Rockville Centre police officers suffered minor smoke inhalation injuries and also refused medical treatment, Uttaro said. No firefighters were injured.

Once on the scene, Nassau police said in a news release, officers "observed that the kitchen area was engulfed in flames with black smoke."

The victim had tried "to extinguish the fire" but was later "found with severe burns to her torso and limbs," the release said.

Firefighters brought the blaze under control within 20 minutes; preliminary findings by investigators indicated the cause was an accidental kitchen fire and not considered suspicious, Uttaro said. 

Leonard Tagariello, 74, said he had been in the property’s community room when he heard the alarms go off.

Firefighters responded within minutes and knocked on doors of about 165 apartments, informing residents to evacuate to the courtyard or parking lot, said resident Brian Diana, 65.

Diana and Tagariello, who live in the opposite wing from where the fire ignited, said fire officials allowed residents back into their apartments at about 8 a.m. but were encouraged to keep their windows open for ventilation.

From the sidewalk on Lakeview Avenue, the interior of the burned apartment was visible through three singed windows. Blinds appeared melted and hung out of one of the openings. A window screen could be seen on top of a bush. Around 11:15 a.m., cleanup crews boarded up a window that appeared to be part of a bedroom.

The Rockville Centre apartments have several community events per year, including one Wednesday night attended by more than 50 people, Tagariello said. It’s the kind of place where everyone knows each other, he said.

Rockville Centre building inspectors were assessing the damage to the building.