Islip dry cleaners, described as 'an institution,' damaged in fire
People and other business owners in the area called Pathway Cleaners & Tailors one of the oldest businesses in the neighborhood.
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A Suffolk County community is gutted after a fire tore through a business described as "an institution" Monday evening.
Eight fire departments responded to Pathway Cleaners & Tailors at 168 Islip Ave. around 6 p.m.
It took firefighters just over an hour to get the fire under control.
No one was injured, but the store was damaged.
Owner Young Choi and his wife briefly stopped by their business to take a few salvagable personal belongings as they contemplate what's next.
"It's tough," Choi said, choking back tears. "Since 1980, 45 years. Maybe I'm the oldest dry cleaner in Suffolk County."
Choi said he's owned the business since 1980, after it was first established 12 years earlier. Residents and other businesses on the block said this was one of the area's oldest stores.
“The man is the one who ran the store," Fernanda Pereira, who works in Islip, said. "She was the tailor, but they were nice people. Very nice people.”
Bobby Mayer, who owns Bagels and More across the street, said he has known the owners of the dry cleaners for more than two decades.
"A lot of people were concerned," he said. "I'm sure he'll get any kind of support that he needs as far as the community goes because we're a pretty close community."
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but Suffolk County police officials said they believe it was non-criminal.
Choi did not say if he and his wife plan to rebuild the business.
