Seaford House Destroyed by Fire

A Seaford house was gutted by a fire early Wednesday morning, but the family inside the home was able to escape unharmed.

The fire erupted at the home on Seminole Avenue at about 3:30 a.m. and by the time firefighters arrived at the scene a short time later, the blaze had spread to all corners of the house, according to Wantagh Fire Chief Jeff Lindgren.

“It appears that that the fire began in the outside rear of the house,” said Lindgren, who added that a boat was also destroyed from the blaze.

The house is located right on the water and within the .

Chief Lindgren said a mother, her three small children and their grandmother living inside the home were able to escape to safety before firefighters arrived. He credited the mother, 37,  for alerting  everyone to get outside to safety once learning of the fire. The fire caused extensive damage to the house and the home is now “unlivable," said Lindgren.

The Wantagh Fire Department responded with 10 fire trucks and approximately 70 fire personnel.

 The early morning fire shook the neighborhood, which is located on a canal.

“I woke up to the sounds of a couple loud explosions,” said Lori Biswanger, who lives three streets away from the where the fire occurred. “The daunting sounds of the fire alarms going off wouldn't stop, so I quickly looked out the window and saw smoke and flames rising from above the houses across the water from me.”

The Nassau County Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating the cause of the fire. Nassau County Arson Bomb Squad detectives said the fire does not appear suspicious.