GC Firefighters BattleHoliday Week House Fire

Firefighters battle the house fire.

Two days after Christmas, on Wednesday, December 27th around 6:00 PM, Garden City firefighters were summoned to a house fire at 78 Lincoln Street. Upon arrival at the scene, firefighters encountered a working house fire, with fire coming out of the first floor windows and heavy smoke emanating from the rest of the home. Fire Chief John P. Casey, along with his four Assistant Chiefs, Jim Meehan, Bill Graham and Charles Cavarra, arrived at the blaze soon after the alarm sounded and they assumed command of fire operations. While operating at the fire, Garden City firefighters encountered fire on the first floor, second floor and roof area of the home. 60 Garden City Firefighters, including 54 Garden City volunteer firefighters, 6 headquarters company firefighters and mutual aid assistance from neighboring volunteer fire departments, including Franklin Square, Stewart Manor, and New Hyde Park, tackled the blaze. Medical assistance was also provided by the Mineola Volunteer Ambulance Corp.

Garden City firefighters formulated an aggressive interior attack to fight the blaze. Utilizing multiple handlines and firefighting teams, firefighters brought the blaze under control in about forty minutes. Fortunately, none of the residents were home at the time of the fire. Two Garden City firefighters suffered minor injuries as a result of the blaze and one was transported to Winthrop Hospital for evaluation and was released later that evening. The blaze was determined to be accidental. According to Fire Chief John Casey, "we had heavy fire on our arrival, the smoke was so dense, all you could see were the flashing lights on the fire apparatus around the scene." He continued, "considering the amount of fire showing on arrival, our firefighters did an outstanding job controlling and containing the fire to one side of the home." Chief Casey also noted his concern for the family indicating that "having a fire in your home any time of year is devastating, but it hits even harder this time of year; our thoughts and well wishes are extended to the family."

Firefighter Roof Team battles blaze.