Brush fire briefly closes Sunrise Highway, delays LIRR, police say
A brush fire along the Long Island Rail Road right of way forced the closure of Sunrise Highway on the Massapequa Park-East Massapequa border for about 40 minutes on Thursday, March 9, 2017, Nassau County police said. Credit: Jim Staubitser
A brush fire along the Long Island Rail Road right of way forced the closure of Sunrise Highway on the Massapequa Park-East Massapequa border for about 40 minutes on Thursday, Nassau County police said.
The fire also forced speed restrictions on trains through the area and caused delays to others on the Babylon branch, according to the LIRR.
Police said smoke conditions from the fire led to the closure of Sunrise between Block Boulevard and Park Avenue starting at about noon. The road was reopened at 12:37 p.m., police said.
The Massapequa Fire Department handled the call and quickly knocked down the fire, police said.
John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”
