Firefighters Stopped Blaze from Spreading Through North Sea Building

North Sea Fire Chief William Rosko Jr. said a heavy volume of fire was coming out of a second-floor back apartment in the G & C Knoebel Electric Corp. building at 16 Mary's Lane when firefighters arrive Saturday night, but they were able to stop the fire from destroying the rest of the building.

Rosko said firefighters began an exterior attack of the flames after the first engine arrived around 10:30 p.m.

The tenant wasn't home when the fire broke out in his apartment, and tenants in the other two second floor apartments were not hurt.

The exterior staircase leading to the rear apartment had already been damaged by the flames, so in order to complete an interior attack, firefighters went into the middle apartment, accessible by a different exterior staircase, "to tunnel a way through" the Sheetrock, exposing the beams to reach the flames, Rosko said. They were able to "pinch the fire," containing it to the one apartment, he said.

The fire chief called for help from the Southampton and Sag Harbor fire departments, and a Rapid Intervention Team from Hampton Bays Fire Department. The Bridgehampton Fire Department stood by at North Sea's headquarters.

Meanwhile, the Southampton Volunteer Ambulance and emergency medical technicians from the Bridgehampton Fire Department medically cleared firefighters afterwards. No injuries were reported.

The body of the fire was knocked down within 30 to 45 minutes, he said.

The rear apartment, including a covered porch which may be where the fire started, Rosko said, was completely gutted. The other two apartments sustained smoke and light water damage. The first floor, which is occupied by G & C Knoebel Electric Corp., sustained minimal water damage, he said.

The Southampton Town Fire Marshal's office is investigating the cause.

One of the challenges in fully extinguishing the blaze was "heavy content" in all the apartments.

However, Rosko said he was fortunate to be familiar with the building's layout, having lived in the front apartment once. He also used to live in an apartment above Leo's Electric, the building right next store.

In fact, when the North Sea Fire Department originally received the call, it was reported that Leo's Electric, which is on the corner of North Sea Road and Mary's Lane, was the one on fire.

Though the fire chief wasn't sure who initially called 911, a neighbor said it was a woman who lives above East Coast Custom Cars, next to the Knoebel Electric building who reported the fire.

Robert Wilson, who lives across the street, said he heard explosions that "sounded like two gun shots going off" as he was laying in bed. He got up to investigate when he saw flames coming from the building across the street. He saw a woman outside screaming, "Is there anybody inside the house?" and "I called the fire department."

Wilson said the fire seemed to be moving quickly. "I thought by the time the fire department got here the whole house would be fully involved," he said.