LIRR service resumes after brush fires

Train service between the Mastic-Shirley station and the Speonk station resumed normal operations early Thursday afternoon after being temporarily suspended because of a series of brush fires, the Long Island Rail Road said.

Brush fires east of Speonk in the Mastic communities had caused the suspension, the LIRR said.

Normal operation between the two stations resumed at 1:23 p.m.

A series of the fires between Amityville and Massapequa Park also led to restricted speeds for trains but that situation had been resolved by 2 p.m., said spokesman Sal Arena.

"We have had some issues coming up off and on because of these fires," he said.

Suffolk County fire officials said firefighters from the Mastic Fire Department fought brushfires near the Forge River in Mastic. Those fires, near Patchogue Avenue and Riviera Avenue, forced the suspension of train service.

Meanwhile, police and fire officials said, the Brookhaven Fire Department dealt with brushfires amid cattails in a small marshy area near Grandview Drive and Parkview Drive in Shirley.

SEE PHOTOSLIRR trains and commuters through the years

A Suffolk police harbor unit also was on scene.

There were no reported injuries in any of the fires.

The National Weather Service said low-relative humidities and gusting winds were responsible for conditions conducive to spreading brush fires on eastern Long Island. Additionally, what the weather service called "fine, dry fuels such as grasses and brush" were creating "an elevated risk for the spread of wildfires."

Wind gusts were upward of 20 mph, while the humidity is at about 20 percent.

Those conditions were likely to continue through to at least Saturday, forecasters said.