The New York State Department of Health continued to evacuate all residents of a Greenport skilled-nursing facility late yesterday after Suffolk fire marshals determined the building's fire suppression and alarm systems were not working. The fire marshals' investigation came after a smoke condition was reported in a 911 call about 4:30 a.m. Monday at San Simeon by the Sound Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation on County Road 48 in Greenport. Suffolk County Fire, Rescue and Emergency Services coordinated the county transit buses and ambulances from across Long Island that arrived last night to pick up the residents, according to Fire Commissioner Rudy Sunderman. Nicholas Grasso and John Valenti report in NEWSDAY that the residents, some of whom could be seen being wheeled out of the San Simeon lobby on stretchers, were transported to other facilities throughout Nassau and Suffolk counties. Southold Town police told Newsday that 110 residents were being evacuated and taken to other facilities.
"All patients within this facility are safe," Sunderman said outside San Simeon on Monday evening. Behind him, a handful of patients waited in Suffolk County Transit buses parked in front of the facility. Ambulances from agencies in Brentwood, Mastic, Moriches, Port Jefferson, Shirley and other communities were also on standby for patients.
Suffolk fire marshals determined Monday afternoon that the nursing home's "fire suppression system as well as the fire alarms were not functioning properly," Southold Town Police Chief Steven Grattan told Newsday about 6 p.m. yesterday.
"They decided that it wasn't safe to keep the residence there until all of this is fixed," Grattan said.
The smoke condition reported at San Simeon remains under investigation, Sunderman said late Monday. That incident lead to responders and nursing home staff evacuating residents to the lobby area as a precautionary measure. Seven residents requiring oxygen were transported to local hospitals — four to Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital in Greenport and three to Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead, he said.
Officials with Suffolk County's Emergency Management and the Southold Town police at the scene Monday evening did not know how long the evacuation of the facility would take.
Suffolk fire officials said firefighters from Greenport, Southold and Mattituck responded to the smoke condition call.
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The Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center has been awarded $4 million from Southampton Town’s Community Preservation Fund, providing funds to support the historic theater that will be used for “major capital projects and enhancements.”
“Years in the making, this investment marks a transformative moment for the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center,” says Julienne Penza-Boone, the theater’s executive director. “With these funds, we will be able to make long-term improvements that not only enhance the patron and artist experience but also elevate our capacity to bring in world-class talent to our stage.”
Penza-Boone began work in 2019 with then Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman and the town’s historian, Julie Greene, to put together a complete history of The Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center.
It opened as a movie theater, then called Prudential’s Westhampton Theatre, in 1932, with former New York Governor Alfred E. Smith on hand. The building was later bought by United Artists, but by the 1990s and the rise of Blockbuster Video and the multiplex phenomenon, the 425-seat single-screen movie theater wasn’t a viable business model, and the building was set for demolition.
As reported on 27east.com, in 1996, a group of concerned citizens worked to revive the art deco theater, raising money from the community for the effort. The theater reopened as the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center on July 4, 1998, and about 45,000 patrons attend events there each year.
In August 2023, the theater entered into an intermunicipal agreement with the Town of Southampton, and the Landmarks and Historic Districts Board voted unanimously to recognize the historic importance of both the building itself and the theater’s cultural impact by designating it as a landmark.
“This funding not only secures the future of an iconic cultural landmark,” added James Kuhn, WHBPAC board chairman, “but strengthens the heartbeat of downtown Westhampton Beach. A thriving performing arts center brings people, energy and opportunity to our community.”
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WNBA star point guard and former college All-American, Caitlin Clark, usually handles basketballs on a court. Later this month, she’ll be handling questions in Woodbury from the Long Island Association. Matthew Chayes reports in NEWSDAY that Clark, who seems on the way to becoming the richest athlete in the history of women's team sports, is scheduled to participate in a discussion moderated by the association’s president and chief executive, Matt Cohen.
The annual LIA fall luncheon begins at 10:30 a.m. Oct. 29 at the Crest Hollow Country Club with a networking reception, followed by the luncheon and program starting at 11:30 a.m.
Tickets for nonmembers are $600 for an individual, and $500 for members, who can suggest questions ahead of time.
The event at the association, a business group that dates to 1926, is sponsored by several nonprofits and companies, including Four Leaf Federal Credit Union, Long Island University, PSEG Long Island and Newsday.
Past speakers for the association have included political and national figures among them U.S. Presidents and prominent athletes.
Clark, 23, will be the association's youngest speaker, Cohen said.
"She is a transformational figure. She's completely elevated the sport. She's a leader. She's relatable. She's young. She's energetic, and I think she'll have a lot to say about leadership and her brand and decision making ... to handling pressure well, to the business community," Cohen said.
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A new analysis of traffic stop data showed "troubling disparities" in how Latino drivers are treated on Suffolk roads, according to a Manhattan civil rights organization that has accused the county’s police department of bias in the past.
The report released by LatinoJustice PRLDEF and Milbank LLP, a law firm that sued the county on behalf of the organization, said Latinos accounted for 29% of the department’s 158,000 traffic stops in 2024 but make up just 22% of Suffolk’s population.
The report said Latinos are more likely to receive a summons, rather than a warning, when stopped for the same reasons as white drivers. Latino drivers were more often ordered out of their vehicles without clear justification.
Michael O'Keeffe reports in NEWSDAY that police were also more likely to conduct searches of Latinos without finding contraband, which the report said indicates lower thresholds of suspicion. The analysis was conducted by Dr. Jessica Tyler, a data scientist who has worked with the Harris (Texas) County Public Defender’s Office.
Suffolk County Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina said in a statement yesterday: "Traffic enforcement is essential to roadway safety, one of the department's top priorities. We analyze and publish traffic stop data regularly and an independent third-party vendor analyzes the data to ensure bias-free policing.
"The Latino Justice report itself advises caution when comparing stop data to county demographics, and its own analysis found no disproportionality using the veil of darkness test," the statement continued. "Enforcement is often focused in high-crash areas and outcomes often reflect serious violations including drivers who are unlicensed, driving unregistered vehicles, speeding in excess of 20 mph over the speed limit, or who commit multiple violations. We continuously review traffic stop data and body camera footage to ensure fair and equitable enforcement."
A study conducted for the SCPD that was released in February said racial bias did not play a significant factor in Suffolk traffic stops.
Suffolk police entered an agreement to reform its policies with the U.S. Department of Justice in 2014. This past August, the DOJ terminated its oversight of the agency, saying it had achieved substantial compliance with the agreement.
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The first nor'easter of the fall left behind a trail of fallen trees and branches and thousands of people without power, but even with gusts of close to 60 mph and flooding in some places, Long Island appears to have escaped with less widespread damage than initially feared. Olivia Winslow reports in NEWSDAY that nevertheless, Long Island may not be so fortunate the next time a storm packing a major punch barrels across the region.
So whether you're cleaning up and making repairs from the two-day nor'easter, or want to know how to manage the next storm, there are storm recovery tips available from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, in conjunction with the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
For example, if flooded, first, make sure everyone is safe, noting "other hazards could still exist." Keep records, such as listing cleanup and repair costs, any flood-related living expenses and the losses you have incurred, such as any appliances, furniture and clothing. And if you have insurance, be sure to contact an insurance adjuster who will assess the damage.
People are advised to take photographs of all relevant areas to document the damage before cleanup begins.
What about safety precautions?
Wear proper protective clothing such as "sturdy shoes, robber gloves and eye protection during the cleanup." If mold is a problem, the guide cautions that people should wear a respirator to filter out mold spores.
Be careful around downed power lines and live wires...people should make sure the electricity is cut off before entering. "Turn off gas lines at the tank or meters," the FEMA guide said. It adds, "Don't wade in flood water. There are likely human waste and dangerous chemicals in that water! Don't use matches, cigarette lighters, or any other open flame" in case gas is trapped inside the home.
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CAST, Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital and Southold Town host a free Fall Community Health Fair this coming Thursday, Oct. 16 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Southold Rec Center on Peconic Lane.
There will be information from a wide variety of Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital Services, along with representatives from numerous non-profit agencies including health insurance companies, health clinics, mental health support services, support agencies dealing with domestic abuse, Latino advocacy organizations — including OLA and Sepa Mujer, the Family Service League, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office and the Southld Fire Department.
There will be activities, raffles and prizes and a children’s art area.
For more information about Thursday’s free event, call CAST at 631.477.1717.
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While working on her dissertation about Montaukett settlements ten years ago, Dr. Allison McGovern repeatedly saw connections between families in Montauk and those in Freetown. This insight launched her into the Mapping Memories of Freetown project, which she has been working on since 2016. As part of that project, McGovern, an archaeologist, has undertaken a cultural resources survey, and this coming Saturday, October 18, she will hold her first presentation on the results of that survey at the Maidstone Club. Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that during the 19th century, Freetown was the area just north of East Hampton Village, near what is now North Main Street, where free people of African and Native American descent settled. From there, and into the 20th century, it became a multicultural working class neighborhood.
For the cultural resources survey, McGovern has been documenting the presence and absence of historic resources in Freetown, an unincorporated hamlet in East Hampton Town. This means McGovern is looking at historic buildings, houses, properties and landscapes in the neighborhood. She then flags those areas, when applicable, for preservation and planning purposes. “The reason that this Freetown survey is so important is because East Hampton cares about their historic resources,” she said. “There’s no doubt about that.” McGovern has been looking at Fowler House, the East Hampton Historical Farm Museum, Calvary Baptist Church and a handful of other landmarks around the town. Once those lands are identified and mapped, McGovern said her findings will help inform the East Hampton Town Planning Board and the NYS Office of Historic Preservation on the historical and archaeological sensitivity of those properties.
The Landmarks Luncheon will take place at the Maidstone Club on Saturday, October 18, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tickets cost $150. Proceeds support the Ladies’ Village Improvement Society’s Landmarks Committee. Those interested can visit lvis.org for more information.
