At approximately 9:05 pm, Suffern received a report of a structure fire at 70 E. Maple Ave. Officers Craig Yustein and Jeff Deluca arrived on the scene in less than 2 minutes, and observed heavy smoke coming out of the residence and flames in the rear of the house. They immediately made entry into the house to check for occupants and located a 48-year-old resident who was sleeping and unaware of the fire. The room where he was sleeping was filled with smoke, with flames right outside his room. The officers were able to get the occupant out of the house and to safety before the fire spread into his room. Sgt. Deirdre Smith then arrived on the scene and coordinated with our fire department, who had an incredibly fast response time and got the fire under control. One of our firefighters also located a family cat in the house and brought it to safety.
Our fire department was assisted by the Tallman and Mahwah Fire Departments. Thanks to the quick response of the Suffern Fire Department, the house was saved from devastation. The Detective Bureau is currently investigating the cause of the fire along with the Rockland County Sheriff’s Department BCI Unit, the Suffern Fire Inspector, and the Suffern Building Inspector. Great job by all involved — once again, this is a reminder of how important fast response times are, as it literally saved a life in this case.