Firefighters pull woman from burning home

Two volunteer firefighters and a neighbor rescued a woman from a burning house Monday, with the firefighters arriving at the Levittown home even before their own fire department's engines, authorities said.

The woman was taken to Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow, where she was in the burn center and in extremely critical condition Monday night, a hospital spokeswoman said.

Deputy Chief Chris Behrens of the Levittown Fire Department said the fire on Bobolink Lane was reported at 2 p.m. and that units from his and other departments responded.

Two firefighters -- Chris Tuohy and Lionel Roseval -- went directly to the scene from their homes and arrived before the fire engines.

Nassau police said a woman in the house heard a smoke detector sounding, and saw smoke emanating from an upstairs living area. She was unable to get into the victim's locked bedroom, police said.

Neighbor Michael Senay, 54, said the woman came running to his house. "She was hysterical," he said. "She said there was smoke and she couldn't get into the room because the room was locked and she knew her roommate was in the room."

Senay said he ran to the house, went up the stairs and started banging and kicking at the locked door. Eventually he broke through, he said, but the smoke initially kept him from getting to the unconscious woman on the burning bed.

He said he ran outside for a breath of air just as a volunteer firefighter arrived and they both went in for the woman. They dragged her out and, with the aid of another arriving firefighter and neighbors, got her clear of the building.

"After they got the woman out, the house just lit up," Behrens said. The origin of the fire was undetermined, police said.

The injured 42-year-old woman's name was not released, but Senay said he knew her as Caroline.

"The whole thing happened so fast," Senay said. "I just ran over there. I didn't think . . . I just did what I hope somebody would do for me."