Fire engulfs roof at 7-11 on Sandhill Road in Wantagh

About 125 firefighters and medics respond to 1:32 am blaze

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About 125 firefighters — including 75 from Wantagh — responded to a fully-engulfed fire at the 7-11 on Sandhill Road in Wantagh early this morning, bringing the raging blaze under control in just over an hour.

Employees of the store escaped without injury. No injuries were reported.

Calls began to come in at about 1:37 am from patrons and passersby who saw flames shooting through the roof of the 7-11. Wantagh Fire Department spokesman Kevin Regan said a general alarm was sounded for all stations and mutual aid was requested due to the construction of the building and the number of calls received,.

Wantagh FD’s Engine 4 was first on scene and began knocking down the flames from the front. They were soon joined by the crew of Engine 7, Regan said. Due to the heavy volume of fire, potential for collapse and the fact that there were no occupants in the building, First Assistant Chief Ken Kelly gave the order that the fire would be attacked from the exterior using master streams from Tower Ladders from Levittown and Bellmore which were set up in the front and rear of the building.

Mutual Aid Companies at the scene were Seaford, North Bellmore, Bethpage, Bellmore and Levittown while East Meadow, North Bellmore and Levittown were on standby at Wantagh Station 2 and North Massapequa and Massapequa stood by at Wantagh HQ.

The Nassau County Fire Marshal’s Office and Nassau County Police Arson/Bomb Squad responded to determine the cause and an investigation is ongoing. The Town of Hempstead Building Inspector was called to the scene to assess the stability of the building, which sustained extensive damage and a representative of the Department of Health was also called to the scene.