Milleridge Inn restaurant closed due to significant fire damage
The historic inn sustained significant damage, including the bar, an office located above the bar, and a dining area adjacent to the bar.
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Multiple volunteer fire departments responded to a blaze at a popular Nassau County restaurant Thursday night.
The Jericho Fire Department received the call around 9:30 p.m. for an active fire at The Milleridge Inn, which is located at 500 North Broadway in Jericho.
The restaurant will not be open today for regular dining, according to the owner.
The historic inn sustained significant damage, including the bar, an office located above the bar, and a dining area adjacent to the bar.
"It just really makes me feel sad because this place is such a famous place," says Butch Yamali, owner of the Milleridge Inn. "We're going to work as close as we can with the Town of Oyster Bay and all the different construction to get it as close open as soon as we can."
All fire operations were under the command of Jericho’s Chief Ketsoglou, with assistance from the Westbury, Syosset, Bethpage, Hicksville, Carle Place, Glenwood, Roslyn, Plainview, and Farmingdale departments, as well.
Crews were able to get the flames under control in about an hour, fire officials say.
"It’s an accidental electrical fire on the exterior of the building. We are looking at issues about the weather, was it the rain, did something affect it," says Michael Uttaro, Nassau County chief fire marshal. "It’s a very old building and that cedar shake usually goes up like kindle so thankfully, it got a good soaking it probably limited the quick spread of the fire. The fire department had to open up walls to make sure the fire was not in any voids."
The fire did not touch the Milleridge Cottage and is not anticipated to cancel weddings scheduled there, says Yamali.
"We're going to make sure everybody's covered. We have other venues that we own that I own. If that building is not available to use, which I believe it will be, then we're going to move them somewhere else," says Yamali.
There were no reported injuries.
“We are incredibly grateful to every firefighter and first responder who came to the Milleridge Inn and fought to save this historic building,” Yamali added.
The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Nassau County Fire Marshal’s Office and the Nassau County Police Department Arson/Bomb Squad.
