Fire closes Great Neck Plaza synagogue

A fire at the North Shore Sephardic Synagogue in Great Neck Plaza on Wednesday night, prompting it to close, was caused by contractors working with power tools, Nassau County officials said.

The Great Neck Vigilant Fire Department responded to a call regarding heavy smoke in a two-story synagogue on Cuttermill Road at about 8:45 p.m., Nassau County Assistant Chief Fire Marshal Andrew Schmitt Jr. said in a news release. The fire department discovered a fire in a crawl space under the stairs in the house of worship.

Those inside the synagogue at the time of the fire self-evacuated, and no injuries were reported, Schmitt said. The fire was deemed under control within a half hour. 

"Due to the fire and smoke damage, the synagogue will be closed, this was the decision at the time of the press release," Schmitt said. "More information will be sent out when received."

The fire was started by contractors in the synagogue who were working with power tools, Nassau County Fire Marshal Mike Uttaro said in an interview. The workers were repairing a staircase when a hot spark from the tools reached below the staircase, "set fire to some debris and some combustible storage" underneath the stairs, Uttaro said.

"It starts the fire; it's not discovered until they smell and see smoke," Uttaro said. "The sprinkler head deploys; the folks in the synagogue safely evacuated."

A village building inspector will assess when the synagogue can reopen, Uttaro said.

A news release from the Nassau County Police Department refers to the temple as the North Shore Sephardic Synagogue. The address listed in the releases matches that on the website of the Ahavat Shalom Synagogue.

"It was determined that it was non suspicious, and there was no criminality," Uttaro said in a news release. "The buildings' fire sprinkler system held the fire to the room of origin."

In a phone call, a person who said he was the synagogue board's president told Newsday, "there was some smoke. Everything is OK." He added that the synagogue would not be closed for any amount of time.

About 75 firefighters, including members of the Great Neck Alert, Manhasset-Lakeville and New Hyde Park fire departments, responded, according to the fire marshal’s release. Local building department officials also responded.

The Nassau County Fire Marshal’s Office and the Nassau County Police Department's Arson/Bomb Squad were investigating.