Two firefighters were rescued from a burning recycling plant in Oceanside after they were trapped by fallen debris, according to the Nassau County chief fire marshal.
They were both hospitalized with injuries that were not life-threatening. A total of five or six firefighters were initially trapped but only two were hospitalized.
The firefighters were rescued by an assistance team waiting outside, according to the Oceanside fire chief.
The fire started at 2:27 p.m. at Cousins Metal Industries on Brown Court.
Witnesses say they heard a loud bang before the flames broke out.
Firefighters worked for approximately three hours to get the flames under control. The fire has since been extinguished.
Warehouse manager Jonathan Antonelli says he initially saw an exhaust fan go up in flames and tried to put it out after getting his workers to safety.
“I with a fire extinguisher did the best I could,” Antonellis says. “My immediate boss was also helping me pull material away from the fire and after that it just got to be too much, got to be too much.”
Oceanside Fire Department Chief Sean Costigan says the call initially came in as an electrical fire, but The cause of the fire is under investigation.