Fire on Crabapple Lane

A house fire broke out on Tuesday morning at 17 Crabapple Lane, off Jericho Turnpike. Commack Fire Department arrived at 10 a.m. The fire broke out on the deck and was knocked down quickly, according to Chief Steven Fontana.

Fontana said the fire appears to have started on the lower-level deck outside and crept up the side of the home to the attic and upstairs bedroom. Five people – parents, grandparents and children – live in the home, but only four were home at the time of the fire. The Commack Volunteer Ambulance Corps assisted the grandfather at the scene.

The fire was knocked down quickly and all residents were rescued, Fontana said. The department also saved the residents' pets – a dog, two chinchillas and cats. One cat was unaccounted for, Fontana said. 

Janine La Joie, of 15 Crapapple Lane, said she called 911 when a neighbor noticed the home next door on fire.

"My neighbor saw the fire in the yard as she was leaving for work and called my home. We got out of the house and called 911. My husband tried to knock down the door to alert our neighbors," La Joie said.

Fontana said Smithtown's fire department provided one truck from their rapid intervention team, a team that goes in to protect other firefighters should one get trapped. Suffolk County Arson team and the Smithtown Fire Marshall were also on site to evaluate the cause of the fire.

Patch will update this article with additional information as it becomes available.