By Hector Flores
John O¹Brien, the EMFD¹s first assistant chief, said the fire started at approximately 5:15 p.m., and the department received the call from Nassau County Firecom at 5:34 p.m.
³We sent two ladder trucks, one engine, one ambulance and one heavy rescue to the scene,² O¹Brien said. ³At one point the East Meadow ladders were in the air, dumping 2,000-plus gallons of water into the fire.²
O¹Brien added that it took 200 firefighters from seven different departments ‹ East Meadow, North Bellmore, North Merrick, Uniondale, Westbury, Roosevelt and Hempstead ‹ to bring the blaze under control by 8 p.m. East Meadow firefighters remained at the scene until 2:15 a.m. the following day.
The Nassau County Fire Marshal¹s Office said that the blaze was caused by a lightning strike.
