Route 24 reopens after fire

A large mulch fire forced the closure of Route 24, Conklin Avenue, between Route 110 and New Highway in East Farmingdale for more than three hours early Monday morning, police and fire officials said.

Flight operations at nearby Republic Airport were not believed to have been impacted by the fire. The road runs to the north of the airport and borders the Airport Plaza Shopping Mall, which was closed at the time the fire began.

The fire was reported in a 911 call at 4:09 a.m., Suffolk County police said. The road was closed at 4:47 a.m. and remained closed until about 7:15 a.m., officials said.

Firefighters from the East Farmingdale Fire Department fought the blaze. The cause of the fire was not known.