Lynbrook firefighters respond to house fire

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The Lynbrook Fire Department responded to a house fire on Linden Street on Christmas Eve just before 9 p.m.

First Assistant Chief Nick Pearsall was first on the scene and saw a first-floor blaze. He broadcasted the news over the radio, and units responded. Vulcan Company was first on the scene and opened the hydrant across the street from the house. After a search, the firefighters discovered that nobody was home.

Vulcan Company members took a fire hose through the front door into the dining room on the first floor, where the fire was escalating up the wall to the second floor. As that was quickly put out, Chief William Abrams advised interior units of a fire in the basement. A second hose line, manned by Engine Company and Hose Company members, was taken down into the basement where the fire originated. A third line, manned by Tally-Ho and Hose Company members was taken to the second floor. The fire had climbed from the basement, up the wall into a second-floor bedroom and onto the attic area above.

In the meantime, Truck Company members cut through steel bars to ventilate the basement windows. As firefighters attempted to break through the ceiling of the second-floor bedroom, a closet door blew open and a flash of fire came out over the heads of the firefighters. They quickly exited the room as the fire ignited gases in the attic and ceiling space. When the firefighters made a second attempt, a second blast exploded over their heads.

Afterward, Abrams, who was directing fire operations, ordered the firefighters to evacuate the home. After a short operation outside the house, hose lines returned to the second floor and extinguished remaining pockets of fire.

Abrams also called for mutual aid from neighboring departments. The Valley Stream, East Rockaway, Malverne, Rockville Centre and Oceanside fire departments sent firefighters to the scene or stood by to cover other alarms in Lynbrook.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation by the Fire Marshal’s office. According to Abrams, it is believed that the fire, which began in the basement, had been burning for a few hours before it was spotted by a neighbor who called the Fire Department. Six firefighters received minor injuries and were treated at the scene by the Emergency Medical Company and released. Firefighters left the scene at 11:15 p.m.