| By Sean Roach
Tarrytown-Sleepy Hollow Patch
In the wake of Sunday's fire in Sleepy Hollow, which destroyed two homes and left 19 people homeless, The Village of Sleepy Hollow recognized those who were affected by the blaze and those who fought to knock down the fire.
"It shows that our firefighters, police officers and ambulance workers are professionals," Sleepy Hollow Mayor Ken Wray said. "It was a terrific job, to have no injuries to these individuals."
Trustee David Schroedel ran through the timeline of events, and said that the Sleepy Hollow Police Department received three 911 calls about the fire around 5 a.m. The first officers on the scene, Sleepy Hollow Sgt. Ebel and P.O. Fotunato along with Tarrytown Sgt. Barbelet and P.O. Macom, made sure everyone got out of the burning buildings.
"Due to their efforts, residents were woken up and rushed out of their homes with the clothes on their backs," he said. "They didn't have any time to stop for anything."
The Sleepy Hollow Fire Department battled the blaze with support from the Tarrytown Fire Department and crews from Westchester County, Valhalla, Ossining, Croton, Briarcliff Manor, Pocantico Hills, Dobbs Ferry and Irvington.
"Their heroic efforts resulted in no loss of life," Schroedel said.
Trustees also honored the countless other volunteers and emergency workers, such as the Sleepy Hollow Ambulance Corps, the Red Cross of Westchester and the Zekus family, who provided blankets for those affected. John Stiloski also contributed food for those battling the fire. Countless others also provided support.
In total, the fire affected five families, including 13 adults, five children and one infant, according to the Red Cross.
Sleepy Hollow resident Ken Torosian said he was upset by comments he had read online (and in this publication) suggesting the housing at 13 and 19 Cedar Street was illegal. "These poor people suffered enough, they don't need fellow residents making comments about if it was proper housing," he said.
Trustees were also interested in dispelling rumors that the houses were over-crowded or in some way illegal.
"They were not in violation," said Trustee Evelyn Stupel who works on the Safe Housing and Code Enforcement Committee.
Village Architect Sean McCarthy had written earlier that the houses that burned were within code and that there was no indication, at this time, that it violated any laws:
"Based on my initial inspection of the buildings area's accessible and safe to inspect, and review of the property files, the structures were not overcrowded... Once the structures are safer to inspect, the Building Department will re-inspect to confirm our initial findings and determine if any other violations existed."
The fire is still under investigation, with no conclusion as to how it was started, though it is labeled "suspicious". |
