By: Jeff Lipton
Three area teenagers were arrested and charged with arson last week, after they started a fire in two garbage cans in front of the Hewlett-Woodmere Public Library that heavily damaged the library's exterior, authorities said.
Investigators said the trio set fire to papers and assorted combustibles inside the garbage cans near the entrance of the library, at 1125 Broadway in Hewlett, shortly after 1:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 13. The teens then ran away, police said.
The blaze quickly spread to the wood door of the library, its window frames and roof enclosure, and melted the two fiberglass garbage cans, causing more than $10,000 in damages, officials said. The Hewlett Fire Department arrived on the scene to put the fire out, according to officials.
An investigation by the Nassau County Arson/Bomb Squad and the fire marshal's office led to the arrest of three suspects that night. They were identified as Steven Ranucci, 17, of Franklin Place in Woodmere; Pedro Melgar, 18, of Peninsula Boulevard in Hewlett; and Jeffrey Okin, 19, of Sachem Street in East Rockaway, police said. They were charged with fourth-degree arson and arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Oct. 14, police said.
"They were caught after good investigative work," said Investigator George Laakso of the fire marshal's office.
Investigators said the three teens were charged with lesser counts of arson because, though they intentionally started the fire, officials believe their intent was not to set fire to the library. "But still, nobody should be starting fires," said Sergeant Kevin Power of the Arson/Bomb Squad. "Did they intentionally start a fire? Yes. [But] it recklessly spread to the front of the building."
Library Director Susan de Sciora said smoke from the garbage cans immediately set off the building's smoke alarms in the vestibule, at about 1:47 a.m. The alarm alerted the central dispatcher at the fire department. Fire officials then notified the library's head custodian, who lives in Woodmere.
De Sciora said she was notified at her Port Washington home at about 2:17 a.m. "I heard that there was a problem at the library, but I didn't know what it was," she said. "I was later told that the front door was charred, and you always worry that the building would catch on fire." De Sciora added that the chance of that happening was remote, because of a built-in sprinkler system.
She said she was "very, very relieved" that the suspects were nabbed. "I've been here 18 years, and we've never had anything like this before," de Sciora said. "We get school-desk vandalism, like when someone carves their initials on the property, but that's it. It's hard to imagine anyone would think something like fire is a joke. These are not 12-year-olds who slipped out of the house and had nothing better to do. But I still don't think they wanted to set the building on fire."
One library patron, who declined to be identified, said he was extremely angry that someone would have the gall to set such a fire. "It's a terrible thing," he said. "This library is a very valuable asset to this community. They could have burnt the building down."
The building underwent major renovations and modernization in the mid-1990s, and is held up as a model facility.
De Sciora said that "minor" suspicious incidents have recently occurred at the library, such as leaves being stuffed in the book return. But she could not say if they were related to last week's fire. "I have no idea if there is a connection, but fire is scary," she said.
She added that the fire did not cause any disruption in library service, as the library was able to open for the day on Oct. 13.
De Sciora said she is waiting for estimates on how much it will cost to replace the doors and the other fire-damaged property, which is covered by insurance. "I wouldn't be surprised if the damage is more than $10,000," she said.
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