Suburban Fire Marshal

This violation may not be obvious to you if you are not a fuel seller or a firefighter. The UN number* shown in the red diamond is 1203 which indicates that the storage tank is holding gasoline. The danger sing indicates that the tank is holding diesel fuel. Gasoline is a flammable liquid that has a very low flash point (ignites at -45 degrees). Diesel is a combustible liquid that has a high flash point (ignites at 100-130 degrees depending on the grade). 

This is very dangerous as the way a fire department might approach an incident involving this tank would be dramatically different for gasoline vs. diesel.

* UN Numbers are four-digit numbers that identify hazardous materials, and articles (such as explosives, flammable liquids, oxidizing solids, toxic liquids, etc.) in the framework of international transport. There is no UN number allocated to non-hazardous substances.

This photo shows a fire sprinkler head that is covered with a glove,  rendering it useless. It would appear that the glove was placed there by the plumbers that installed the new copper water line in an attempt to prevent the sprinkler head from activating while they were soldering.  That was a good idea until the forgot to take it down.

Not. quite sure what happened to the fire extinguisher that the sign is pointing to but A-its not there and B-this would be a poor location for an extinguisher as the extinguisher reduces the required width of the door opening and the extinguisher would be subject to damage from everyone bumping into it. 

This is an incredibly dangerous idea. If this propane tank was leaking, the explosion that resulted will be catastrophic!

I believe that this one is self explanatory. 

Suffolk County Police Fourth Squad detectives are investigating a crash that injured three people, one seriously, in Smithtown this morning.
 Emily Loach was driving a 2017 Honda Accord eastbound in the left lane on Nesconset Highway near Southern Boulevard when she attempted to make a right turn and struck an eastbound 2010 Jeep in the right lane driven by Neiko Genao at 1:49 a.m. The Jeep overturned.
 
Loach, 20, of Smithtown, was transported to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment of serious injuries. Her brother Thomas Loach, 17, of Smithtown, a passenger in the Honda, was transported to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. Genao, 19, of Centereach, was transported to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. Another passenger in the Honda and two passengers in the Jeep were not injured and declined medical treatment at the scene.  

Nesconset Fire Department operated at the scene with assistance from the Smithtown and St. James Fire Departments.

 
Both vehicles were impounded for safety checks.
 
Detectives are asking anyone with information to call the Fourth Squad at 631-854-8452 or anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS.

SCPD Press Release

1654 hours. The Smithtown Fire Department is dispatched to a report of a traffic collision at Main Street and North Country Road. Units arrive to find crash involving two vehicles, one of which left the roadway and overturned. The vehicle came to rest on its side against a tree on the lawn of the Smithtown Library. FD personnel stabilized and secured both vehicles while EMS personnel packaged and transported two patients. All FD units cleared from the scene by 1830. 

2139 hours. The St. James and Nesconset FIre Departments responded to a report of a structure fire at 465 Moriches Road in the St. James Fire District. Arriving units encountered light smoke coming from the building. A quick search led crews to an extinguished mattress fire. FD personnel overhauled and ventilated the building. A Fire Marshal was requested from the Town of Smithtown Department of Public Safety. There were no injuries.

0905 hours. The Smithtown Fire Department responds to a report of a traffic collision on Route 347 near Plaisted Avenue. Crews arrive to find a single vehicle that left the roadway and came to rest in a wooded area. FD Personnel secured and stabilized the vehicle so that the EMS crew could remove the occupant. The subject was evaluated by EMS.

1100 hours.  Suffolk police took a report of an overturned kayak on the Nissequogue River with two subjects in the water. Two SCPD boats, Bay Constables from the Town of Smithtown Department of Public Safety, a helicopter from SCPD and the Kings Park Fire Department responded. While units were still en-route, a second call was received reporting that the subjects were on shore near 112 Riviera Drive. At that point, most units were cancelled. FD EMS personnel evaluated the subjects and SCPD took the report. 

2044 hours. The St. James Fire Department is dispatched to a report of a traffic collision across from the main house at Lake Avenue and Moriches Road. Units arrived to find a crash involving a car and two motorcycles. All of the injured were transported to the hospital by FD ambulance. None of the injuries appeared life threatening. 

Nesconset Fire Department responds to an automatic fire alarm at the Long Island Bagel Cafe (248 Smithtown Blvd). Units arrive to find smoke in the building. The alarm is re-activated as a structure fire, bringing in units from the Ronkonkoma and St. James FIre Departments. Crews quickly determined that the issue was with a rooftop HVAC unit. The unit was shutdown, the store vented and the Fire Marshal ordered the owner to have the unit repaired. There were no injuries and all units were back in service within 30 minutes.

1831 HRS - Express Drive North west of Blydenburgh Road. Car vs. pole. The driver self extricated and was RMA with the EMS crew from CI-Hauppauge Ambulance. FD units were 3-8-31,32,3-8-14,3-8-11,3-8-9. Fd personnel applied absorbent to some leaking coolant oil from a pole mounted transformer that was thrown into the center of the street. Fd also assisted SCPD and PSE&G with traffic control.

Hauppauge FIre Department extinguishes a vehicle fire on the LIE westbound at exit 57. Chiefs Walker and Martinez operated with engines 1 and 4. There were no injuries.

0004 hours. The Smithtown Fire Department was called to respond to a reported house fire at 190 Brooksite Drive. Units arrived to find smoke pushing out of a small two story private dwelling. Units made entry and found a clothes dryer burning in the basement. The fire was quickly extinguished, the area was overhauled and the house was ventilated. The incident was placed under control within 30 minutes and all units secured from the scene within an hour. Chief of Department Kevin Fitzpatrick was the incident commander. Fire Marshals from the Town of Smithtown Department of Public Safety are investigating. The Hauppauge Fire Department sent a RIT and the St. James Fire Department sent an engine to cover.

2138 Hours. The Ronkonkoma, Nesconset, Lakeland and Farmingville Fire Departments respond to a report of a house on fire on Patricia Lane in Lake Grove. Units arrive to find that there had been a small fire in a bedroom on the upper level of a two story house. The fire involved a battery operated bluetooth speaker, which the homeowner removed from the building. That fire was extinguished on the front lawn and the remaining fire in the bedroom was extinguished with a portable fire extinguisher. The house was ventilated and crews opened the wall in the bedroom and overhauled. The Lake Grove Fire Marshal responded to the scene and determined that the fire started in the Brookstone Big Blue Party Wireless indoor/outdoor speaker. These speakers were recalled in October of 2018 due to fires occurring within the lithium ion batteries. Thankfully the occupants of this house were home. Had they not quickly discovered and extinguished the fire, the damage would have been extensive. The Fire Marshal packaged up the unit and advised the homeowner to contact their insurance company. The Fire Marshal also filed a report with the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The CPSC has twelve fires involving these speakers on file.

If you or someone you know has one of these speakers, stop using them IMMEDIATELY. Remove the batteries from the bottom of the unit, and properly dispose of them. Brookstone is no longer in business so there is no way to return the speaker for a refund. Here is a link to the CPSC Website relating to this recall.

https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2018/brookstone-wireless-speakers-recalled-due-to-fire-hazard

Memorial Day is seen as the unofficial start of summer and has become synonymous with trips to the beach and backyard barbecues. Often overlooked is the real reason behind the holiday – honoring the nation’s fallen service members.

With that in mind, here are five interesting facts about Memorial Day:

1. Memorial Day began as a response to the Civil War
Originally called Decoration Day, Memorial Day began as an effort to honor the roughly 620,000 soldiers who died during the Civil War.  There were many unofficial remembrances between 1864 and 1868, when Union General John A. Logan called for the first nationwide Decoration Day on May 30, 1868, which was marked by decorating the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers and flags. in 1882 it became known as Memorial Day. In 1967, Federal law declared "Memorial Day" as the official name. In 1971, federal law changed the observance of the holiday to the last Monday in May and extended the honor to all soldiers who have died in American wars.

2. You know where you were born, right? There have been battles for years about the birthplace of Memorial Day. President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo, New York, to be the "Birthplace of Memorial Day" in 1966,  according to the Library of Congress. Other localities are known to have celebrated the holiday earlier, and exactly where the first celebration took place remains up for debate.

3. Let there be a speech: The president or vice president customarily steps up to the microphones at Arlington National Cemetery to make a speech honoring the fallen on Memorial Day.  Ahead of Memorial Day weekend, the 3rd U.S. Infantry Division places American flags at all of the graves at Arlington.

 4. Zip it for a minute. It’s the law. Congress passed a law in December of 2000 requiring Americans to pause at 3 p.m.. local time on Memorial Day to remember and honor the fallen.

5. This is why you should wear a poppy on Memorial Day: Canadian Lt. Col. John McCrae, who served as a surgeon for an Allied artillery unit during World War I, spotted the bright red flowers poking through battlefields in France and Flanders in 1915.  That inspired him to write the poem, “In Flanders Field.”  Later that year, Georgia teacher and volunteer war worker, Moina Michael, read the poem and wrote her own, “We Shall Keep the Faith” to urge making the poppy a tribute to those who have died in wartime.

One more important bit of information. On Memorial Day, the American flag is to be flown at half-staff until noon and then full staff from noon to sunset. 

Suffolk County Police arrested a woman for driving while intoxicated following a motor vehicle crash in Central Islip that seriously injured a 5-year-old girl.

 
Sandra Stewart was driving a 2001 Toyota Camry eastbound on Motor Parkway, turning left onto Joshua’s Path, when her vehicle crashed head-on with a 2006 Honda SUV that was travelling westbound on Motor Parkway at approximately 8:53 p.m.
 
Genesis Castro-Aguilar, a 5-year-old passenger in the backseat of the Honda, was transported via Central Islip Hauppauge ambulance to Southside Hospital in Bay Shore and then airlifted to Cohen Children’s Medical Center in New Hyde Park for treatment of serious injuries. Stewart was also transported by CIHVAC to Southside Hospital with minor injuries. The driver of the Honda, Hugo Chavez, 23, of Huntington Station, and four other passengers including his wife and another child, were not injured. 
 
Fourth Squad detectives charged Stewart, 57, of 832 Narragansett Ave., East Patchogue, with Driving While Intoxicated. She is being held overnight at the Fourth Precinct and is scheduled to be arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip on May 26.
 
Both vehicles were impounded for safety checks.
 
A criminal charge is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The Hauppauge Fire Department also responded to this incident. 

Information above is via SCPD Press release 19-289999

1540 hours. The Nissequogue Fire Department responds to 546 Long Beach Road in regards to an activated fire alarm. Units arrive to find heavy smoke in an unoccupied 10,000 square foot private dwelling. Crews forced entry and encountered heavy fire on all floors of the three story building. FD personnel picked up a hydrant on Long Beach Road and dropped a supply line down the street and up the 3-400 foot long driveway. After making an initial push into the house, crews were ordered out when much of the upper floors collapsed. An exterior attack was mounted by members of multiple departments using hand lines and a deck gun. Once the fire was knocked down, crews re-entered the house to complete extinguishment. The fire was placed under control at 1805. Two firefighters suffered minor injuries. Firefighters left the scene at approximately 2130 hours but returned back to extinguish a number of hot spots at approximately 0030 hours on 5/26.

Mutual aid was provided by the following agencies:
Commack Fire Department-Engine to the scene
Hauppauge Fire Department-Engine and Ladder to the scene
Smithtown Fire Department-Engine and Heavy Rescue to the scene
St. James Fire Department-Engine and Ambulance to the scene
Centereach Fire Department-Ladder to the scene
Setauket Fire Department-Engine to cover, then moved up to the scene
Stony Brook Fire Department-Engine and Ambulance to cover, redirected to the scene

Because Long Beach Road is a narrow street and is the only way in and out of Long Beach, all apparatus not being used were parked at Long Beach. 

The cause of the fire is being investigated by Fire Marshals from the Town of Smithtown along with detectives from the Suffolk County Police Department Arson Squad.