By Jennifer Smith
Newsday
Copyright 2007 Newsday, Inc.
 Photo Mark Oshinsky/Publiceyephoto.net Two firefighters comfort the rescued dog. |
HUNTINGTON, N.Y. — A backyard bonfire set by a teenager sparked a blaze that gutted his family’s Huntington home, sending flames through the roof and injuring four, Suffolk police and local fire officials said.
Despite serious damage to the house at 20 Westwood Dr., one bright spot emerged from the Saturday night fire. Firefighters found the family’s Cavalier King Charles spaniel, Oliver, huddled wet but unharmed under a bed in a second-floor bedroom after the fire was put out.
“There was heavy fire damage to the ceiling and to the roof joist,” Tom Magno, third assistant chief of the Dix Hills fire department, said of the room where the dog was found. “The fact that he was low to the ground is the reason why he’s probably still alive.”
The fire apparently started when the homeowner’s 14-year-old son, who was not identified, began setting fire and cardboard alight in his backyard, Suffolk police said. Flames traveled up the outside of the house and spread to the second floor, fire officials said.
Responding to a 9:15 p.m. call, the Melville fire department found “the whole attic was engulfed and the fire was already through the roof,” said Melville fire chief Dave Kaplan. Dix Hills and three other local fire departments helped battle the blaze.
One fireman fell off a ladder and broke his ankle, Kaplan said. Another was hospitalized for smoke inhalation, as was a police officer and the 14-year-old, he said.
Not so Oliver, a low-slung dog who “looked like he was breathing well,” Magno said. “We got a towel and cleaned him up ... It was a good feeling to carry him out and give him back to the family.”
Suffolk police said the boy was arrested and charged with fourth-degree arson. He is due in family court this week.