Barbecue fire damages Shaw Avenue house

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Fire department officials from Valley Stream, Elmont, Woodmere, Inwood, Hewlett and Malverne spent 45 minutes on June 17 trying to get a fire on Shaw Avenue under control.

According to Chief Jason Croak, the Valley Stream Fire Department received a call about the fire at around 7:40 on Sunday and were on the scene within five minutes. He said that the fire started when residents were barbecuing in the backyard for Father’s Day and there was a malfunction with the barbecue. Due to the proximity of the barbecue to the house, Croak said, the rear of the house was damaged on all three floors.

Croak said that it took about 45 minutes to get the fire under control, but firefighters were on the scene for about three hours because there were multiple apartments inside the house and the firefighters wanted to make sure the fire did not spread. He also said that the fire spread to the roof between the solar panels. “It was tough to get to,” Croak said.

Fortunately nobody was injured, but one homeowner was transported to the hospital for high blood pressure.