Neighbors Spots Two House Fires

Damage to two houses where fires broke out in recent days could have been a lot worse had it not been for observant neighbors, according to fire officials.

On Tuesday, flames damaged the exterior of a house at 27 Gainsborough Court in Montauk shortly after a plumber repaired an outdoor shower. Tom Baker, an East Hampton Town fire marshal, said the plumber had been soldering copper pipes for the shower less than an hour before the fire broke out.

A neighbor called 911 at around 3 p.m. “The neighbor noticed smoke — thank goodness,” Mr. Baker said. The damage could have been worse, he said, as the plumber and the homeowner were no longer at the house.

The Montauk fire chief, Vinnie Franzone, located the fire in the outdoor shower when he arrived. Flames were already rolling toward the roof. Firefighters on the first engine to arrive were able to douse the blaze quickly. The outer wall of the shower was damaged. The fire did extend into the house, though not past the Sheetrock, Chief Franzone and Mr. Baker said. Power to the residence had to be shut off as a precaution, the chief said, due to exposed wiring inside the wall.

The fire department used two engines, two tanker trucks, a water supply truck, and three ambulances, along with its fire-police personnel. No injuries were reported. Firefighters responded in warm temperatures: It was already 82 degrees in Montauk, with an air quality alert in effect for southeast Suffolk County.

A lamp with no shade and some wind were blamed for starting a fire in Springs on Saturday night. The Great Bonac Fireworks event was just getting started at 9:19 p.m. when the Springs Fire Department, which was on standby for the big show, were called to 182 Three Mile Harbor-Hog Creek Road.

Again, it was a neighbor who noticed smoke coming from the house, according to Mr. Baker, who said that with the fireworks underway it could have easily gone unnoticed. The summer renters were not home, he said.

Firefighters encountered heavy smoke and a lot of heat on the second floor of the house, which had a confusing layout, according to Darrin Downes, second assistant of the Springs Fire Department. He said it was difficult to locate the fire initially. After a ceiling was taken down, firefighters found that flames had crept up behind a dormer into the roof line, Mr. Baker said.

He determined that a lamp with no shade had been left on by an open window. He believes the wind blew one panel of the window draperies across the exposed lightbulb, and the draperies caught fire. Once they burned up, the flames crept up the wall. There was no indication, he said, that there had been a shade on the lamp.

The fire damaged the bedroom, and there was smoke damage in the hallway.    Chiefs called for extra manpower from the East Hampton Fire Department as a precaution.