The Pizzeria in Babylon closes temporarily after floor collapse

A popular Babylon pizza shop announced it must temporarily close after a portion of its floor collapsed Thursday afternoon.

The Pizzeria on E. Main Street has shut its doors after "the crawl space gave out and the pizza oven went through the crawlspace," co-owner Cliff Weinstein told Newsday.

"No one was hurt, that’s the only thing that matters," Weinstein, 44, of Brightwaters, said in a telephone interview late Thursday. "We’ll fix it and reopen."

Weinstein, who owns seven other locations of the same name alongside brothers Paul and Dan Saccoccio, did not have a timeline for completing repairs.

The incident occurred about 4:50 p.m., a Suffolk County Police Department spokesperson told Newsday via email. Police confirmed no injuries were reported during the incident.

The crawl span ran beneath "about a third of the building," Weinstein said. The collapse only impacted the kitchen and "back of the house" areas, he added. The dining room area was unscathed.

Afterward, Weinstein said all patrons of the restaurant were escorted out, all utilities were shut off and the doors closed. Late Thursday, he said crews were "pumping water out of the crawlspace because pipes broke." He described the scene as an "all hands on deck" situation.

Anyone who placed a takeout or catering order for the month of July will be contacted by the restaurant directly, the owners said in an Instagram story. Those orders, the social media message said, will be "prepared at one of our nearby locations, so it will not be affected."

In a second Instagram story, the owners offered a hopeful message in an italicized font: "A temporary pause. A stronger comeback."

Babylon is one of The Pizzeria’s eight locations throughout Suffolk County, the most recent of which opened June 10 in the mixed-use development The Boulevard in Yaphank, Newsday previously reported. Each eatery offers specialty pies, heroes and classic small bites, and larger locations, like Babylon, include a full bar that serves signature cocktails.