Staff battles health care facility fire

Staff at a Roslyn Heights residential health care facility put out an electrical fire Friday morning and moved the facility's more than 200 occupants to safety within the building, Nassau County fire officials said.

A fire in Sunharbor Manor's main electrical room in the basement started at about 9:48 a.m., according to Vincent McManus, a division supervisor for the Nassau County Fire Marshal's Office.

Sunharbor Manor staff used a "shelter in place" technique, which means moving people to safety without evacuation, he said.

As several employees worked to put out the fire with portable extinguishers, other workers moved the facility's 228 residents to safety in another area of the three-story building at 255 Warner Ave.

No one was injured, McManus said.

"In terms of safety for the residents living there, this is a success story," McManus said. "The systems we inspect every year for safety did their job, and so did the staff."

McManus said the automatic fire alarm and the backup generators were among the systems that worked when the fire struck. He also said the facility has about 150 employees.

McManus said the electrical system is destroyed and that the fire marshal was assessing damage and inspecting other systems to make sure the facility's backup generators could safely supply heat and light.

"It looks as if the backup generators will be in place for awhile," he said.

McManus said that the Roslyn, Glenwood and Port Washington fire departments responded to the emergency call, as well as Nassau County police.