Official: Dog escapes Massapequa home fire

A dog fled a burning home in Massapequa after the fire department forced open the door, an official said.

The fire, which started in the kitchen of the two-story, 51-year-old raised-ranch-style Melrose Avenue home just before 2 p.m., took about a half-hour to extinguish.

No one was hurt, according to Gerard Keuchler, an assistant chief of the Massapequa Fire Department.

The dog exited when the chief forced the door open, Keuchler said. It was later reunited with its owner, who was not home at the time of the fire.