'Very Violent, Very Fast Incident' Sparked Montauk Motel Fire

A fire ripped through one of the buildings at Hartman’s Briney Breezes Motel in Montauk early Friday morning, but firefighters stopped flames from spreading to other buildings in the complex and those next door.

The East Hampton Town fire marshal’s office ruled the cause accidental, blaming it on electrical malfunction caused by a loose connection at the pole.

“It was a very violent, very fast incident,” said Tom Baker, a fire marshal who was on the scene to investigate. There was no one inside the rooms on the first floor or second floor, where the fire began. “If this was Fourth of July weekend, depending on the number of people in the fire room, people would not have been able to get out,” Mr. Baker said.

He said a groundskeeper was asleep with his wife in a legal basement apartment when a sound woke him up. “He said it sounded like someone was dragging something very heavy. He jumped out of bed, looked out the window, and saw the flames above him.”

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The groundskeeper called 911 at 4:25 a.m. as he ran to the nearby house of the owner, John Hartman, who also called 911.

When Montauk Fire Department first responders arrived at the Old Montauk Highway complex, the two-story building was engulfed in flames, according to Chief Joe Lenahan. He knew it was bad even from a distance away. “When I crested Flamingo Hill on the other end of town, I could see the flames,” he said.

With the groundskeeper and his wife out and no guests staying in that building, firefighters turned their attention to evacuating the other motel buildings. About 10 people were found and taken to a safe place on the west side of the complex.

The roof was already on fire. Firefighters poured water on it from both the ground and from ladder trucks. The chief called for additional help from the Amagansett Fire Department’s rapid intervention team, brought in to back up interior firefighters, and the East Hampton Fire Department, which brought its tanker and aerial ladder truck. Tankers from Amagansett and Springs were also brought in. There were at least 120 firefighters in total, the chief said.

Firefighters worked hard to prevent the flames from spreading to other buildings, both in the complex and next door. The building ablaze, the second on the east side of the complex, is near several other commercial structures and on a sloping site overlooking the ocean.

Engine companies and water supply trucks were also given the task of protecting the nearby buildings, which were in danger thanks to a strong westerly wind. The flames burned hedges and bushes on that side, but there was no damage to any other buildings. “It was a great stop,” the chief said. “Everybody did an incredible job.”

The fire was fully extinguished in about an hour. Firefighters remained on the scene another hour looking for pockets of flame. No injuries were reported.

After sifting through the debris, Mr. Baker found a couple of burned electrical outlets on the second floor and then discovered that one of the refrigerators in the efficiency rooms had a hole in the back, caused by what he believes to be a “drop neutral,” a term for when the voltage fails to divide into electrical breaks. Appliances that only get 110 volts electricity, for example, would end up with 220 volts. “It really just blew this refrigerator apart,” he said.

Early in his investigation, he said he noticed “a glow” coming from the top of the electrical pole at the street. It turned out to be a small fire caused by a loose connection, he said, which is not uncommon, particularly down on the Old Highway along the water, due to the wind.

Jeffrey Weir, a spokesman for PSEG-Long Island, said that the electrical company was unaware of any issues at the pole. “On the night of the fire, we responded and made it safe for the fire department to extinguish the fire,” he said. “Service is still running and providing electricity to parts of the complex there that were not impacted by the fire, and when we receive the report from the fire marshal, we will investigate.”

A hotel manager declined to comment, and a message left for the owner was not returned.

Mr. Baker said the groundskeeper and the motel workers had not reported any malfunctions, such as lights flickering or a strange odor, leading up to the fire. In fact, the electricity in the groundskeeper’s apartment continued to function. However, Mr. Baker noted, “dropped neutrals can happen fast.”

The first two floors of the building were destroyed, and with the basement suffering water damage, the building will likely be torn down, according the fire marshal. “There’s not much there to save,” he said.