May god bless the firefighters

If you are not from around here (i.e. long island or nyc metro) then you may not be aware....right now so many firefighters from parts of LI are fighting what our local paper says is the 7th worse brush fire, in our history.

over 1,000 acres of the pine barrens has been burned

3 firemen injured

3 homes destroyed

Here is a link to the article

http://www.newsday.com/news/breaking/cuomo-declares-state-of-emergency-in-suffolk-1.3652171

only registered users may seen so I just cut and paste the whole damn thing below!!! (credits to newsday of course)

I just wanted to share this story, in hopes that your prayers, and positive thoughts could find there way to make room for new york's finest. Keep these men and women safe, not just the firefighters but hundreds of volunteers, the horses who are being evacuated (from annie's farm) the families and loved ones of those who are fighting this blaze. Our Emt's, rescue units, and others that I may have left out. I hope that an army of angels are with you are this fight. Please get home safely.

xo

- J Newsday > News > Breaking Print Aa 218 comments Email Cuomo declares state of emergency in Suffolk Originally published: April 10, 2012 6:27 AM Updated: April 10, 2012 6:00 PM By MARK HARRINGTON, JOHN VALENTI AND KERY MURAKAMI lidesk@newsday.com Two Manorville homes and a business are destroyed as a raging blaze moves through 500 acres in Suffolk County. Strong winds and dry conditions yielded tinderbox-like conditions in the area. Videojournalists: Chris Ware, News 12, Stringer News (April 9, 2012) Videos Two Manorville homes and a business are destroyed Massive blaze in Suffolk Galleries A wildfire burned the shed in the backyard Suffolk brush fire Brush fire in Yaphank, Monday 4/10/12 closes roads reader photos Brush fire reader photos Firefighters stand on a mound as the Sunrise 1995 Sunrise fire photos Web links evac map (April 10, 2012) Map of evacuations News12 For more on this story visit News 12 Long Island Brush Fire as seen from LIE Exit 69 reader photos Send in your photos As investigators explore the possibility that the pine barrens wildbrush fire was started by someone who was burning brush or leaves, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo declared a state of emergency Tuesday in Suffolk County. "All the ingredients were there for a real tragedy," Cuomo said minutes after touring the scene from a helicopter over Manorville and Ridge, noting that the coordinated response efforts -- and the efforts of volunteer firefighters -- averted that tragedy. "This is a situation that could have gotten out of control," he said. "If you lost control of a fire this large, it could have been very, very, very bad." MORE: Latest photos | Your photos | Traffic, LIRR delays LIVE: News12's coverage of the fire | Map of evacuations The fire, which burned 1,124 acres, has been largely contained, though concerns remained about flare-ups as the winds have picked up, officials said. "It's not over until it's over," Cuomo said, "until the last ember is out." The governor's declaration paves the way for funding, eased statutes and more flexibility as state assets are deployed to help restoration efforts, he said. "After reviewing the damage, it is well merited in this case," he said. The fire -- the seventh largest in state history -- engulfed three homes and left three firefighters injured, including one who was hospitalized with burns, Suffolk Executive Steve Bellone said. Asked whether the fire may have been accidentally started by someone burning leaves or brush, Suffolk County Fire and Rescue Commissioner Joe Williams said officials had heard the rumors, and the arson squad and state Department of Environmental Conservation investigators were looking into them. Bellone said, "It's being investigated. We have no knowledge of that at this time." The fire had started on the north side of Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton Monday and burned through some 300 acres of lab property, mostly woods and fields. Michael Pena, manager of the laboratory protection division, said there were no controlled burns on the day of the fire, which started about 2:30 p.m. Monday. "There was no activity at all at that part of the lab," he added. Open burning is the largest cause of wildfires in the state. Debris burning caused 36 percent of all wildfires in New York between 1985 and 2009, according to the DEC. Since 2009, open burning between March 16 and May 14, when dry grasses and leaves are abundant, has been banned across the state. Between 2010 and 2011, the amount of wildfires during the ban period decreased by 26 percent. Jerome Hauer, state commissioner of homeland security and emergency services, warned that conditions for additional fires will remain optimal for at least another 10 days. "People are going to need to be very careful with outside burning of any kind," said Hauer, whose efforts coordinating state and local resources were praised by Cuomo. "Anything they do outdoors, whether cigarettes or barbecues," Hauer said, "has the potential of lighting the underbrush." Bellone noted during a recent tour of the damage that he saw a new brush fire whipped up by increasing winds that had to be extinguished. By the afternoon Bellone, Cuomo, Hauer and fire officials expressed hope that, barring the unforeseen, the situation was finally under control. A county fire official said that about 200 firefighters battled the fire Tuesday. Twenty brush trucks, 10 tankers and 10 engines were employed. Thirty-five Suffolk County fire departments are involved, and Nassau firefighters have been sent home, he said. Before addressing the media in a midafternoon news conference, Cuomo spoke to firefighters near a Manorville barn destroyed by fire. "You guys made all the difference," the governor said. Bellone praised the work of the firefighters, saying those volunteers had "helped save property and lives." Those efforts included teams on the ground, as well as a state helicopter making water drops from the sky. Hauer called those drops "very effective" in dousing hot spots, but noted: "There's so much brush out there that's prone to burn. We've got to be vigilant over the next day or so to ensure we don't have any flare-ups." The National Weather Service said a red-flag warning for outdoor fires, which expired at 8 p.m. Monday, was back in effect from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday. The relative humidity will be as low as 25 percent and west winds blowing 10 to 20 mph with gusts up to 30 mph are predicted. Bellone said lessons learned during the 1995 Sunrise Fire -- the largest in state history -- helped in fighting this wildfire, and officials have been coordinating efforts. He said 41 homes remained without power Tuesday, down from thousands of outages. The blaze has had firefighters working around the clock since Monday, and early Tuesday Bellone praised the work of those volunteers, calling them "an inspiration." He noted the Manorville and Ridge fire departments had worked "under very difficult and dangerous circumstances." The three injured firefighters were taken to Stony Brook University Medical Center, Bellone said. Two were released after being treated for smoke inhalation but one was admitted with first- and second-degree burns, Bellone said. Bellone said he met with the burned firefighter who was "in great spirits," adding: "It's a real testament to the spirit and heroism of these volunteer firefighters . . . who are working to protect their neighbors." The firefighter was identified as William Hille Jr., 35, of Manorville, who hospital officials said was in good condition in the burn unit. Earlier Monday night, the wildfire, which started as two separate brushfires that combined, raged through at least 500 acres of woods and vegetation, fueled by the bone-dry brush, strong and steady winds and low humidity. The inferno burned swaths of Manorville, Ridge, Riverhead and several other communities in what was considered a single inferno, Bellone and rescue officials said. Around midnight Monday, the eastern front of the fire was still burning out of control. At a Tuesday morning news conference, flanked by police, fire, emergency services officials and Brookhaven National Lab officials and American Red Cross representatives at the Saints Peter and Paul Church parking lot, on Wading River Road in Manorville, Bellone seemed more assured the tide was turning in the battle than the previous evening when he called the fire "as serious as it gets." The wildfire brought back memories of the four-day battle to extinguish the Sunrise Fire, which ultimately cost state and local governments more than $5.2 million. Bellone spokeswoman Vanessa Baird-Streeter said Tuesday county costs associated with this fire are almost exclusively personnel and overtime related. No estimate of those costs were available. Damage assessment has not yet been done, but damage to land, fire equipment, homes and outbuildings are expected to be listed in the state of emergency declaration, officials said. Suffolk Legis. Edward P. Romaine (R-Center Moriches) said reforestation could also be a part of the request. "We've been down this road with Tropical Storm Irene," Lesko said, in terms of documenting losses. "The first thing is to declare the state of emergency." On Monday evening, as the fire moved in a southeast direction, a mandatory evacuation order was issued for parts of Riverhead and other areas also were evacuated, Bellone said. "We are fortunate that the area that we are talking about here is a very isolated area in terms of homes, residences and buildings," Bellone said Monday. The mandatory evacuation of parts of Riverhead was ordered at 5 p.m. Monday, with residents relocated to the Riverhead Senior Center on Shade Tree Lane in Aquebogue. The evacuation order was lifted by Tuesday afternoon, though police and fire officials maintained a presence on roads around Manorville, and it was unclear whether all roads closed during the fire were completely accessible. Red Cross shelter manager Scott Wheaton said four evacuees from Manorville spent the night on cots at Riverhead Senior Center but they'd headed off to try to see if they could get back home in the morning. Most evacuees, he said, apparently stayed with friends or family. Ridge Fire Chief Steve Gray said the inferno started as two fires at one point Monday but merged. Gray said some people who had been evacuated were allowed to go back to their homes to get animals and valuables when it was deemed safe. Manorville was particularly hard hit by the blaze. Chief Craig Robinson of the Plainview Fire Department said he saw two or three houses that burned to the ground in Manorville near North Street. Johnny Moretti, 26, was in shock Monday night as he stood outside the Manorville home where he'd lived all his life. Flames had gutted the one-story house on Oakwood Drive, taking out the basement, kitchen, garage and most of the family's belongings. A half-charred Happy Easter sign hung in a front window. "I'm at a loss," Moretti said, watching the remainders of a flame flicker in a tree next to the destroyed home. "I watched the fire come all the way up and there was nothing I could do." Diane Juergens, a Ridge resident, said she encountered the blaze as she returned home from attending classes around 3 p.m. "It looked like a volcano exploding," said Juergens, whose husband, Chris, had been kept from the home by one of several roadblocks around the neighborhood. "The plume of smoke in the air was just amazing." With Ellen Yan, Patrick Whittle, Bill Bleyer, Stacey Altherr, Emily C. Dooley, Gary Dymski, William Murphy, Yancey Roy, Kevin Deutsch, Tania Lopez and Paul LaRocco