The Westhampton brush fire that burned 400 acres of dry woodland forest and sparked a massive statewide response in eastern Suffolk County on Saturday has been fully knocked down, while arson investigators have launched a probe into the cause of the blaze. As reported in NEWSDAY, first responders and local officials were relieved yesterday that the region was spared from widescale injuries and property damage during the fire, the biggest of four in the area. But they cautioned that a risk remained that the fire could restart. Suffolk County Fire, Rescue and Emergency Services Commissioner Rudy Sunderman said the fire will not be considered completely "contained" until 10-foot breaks are built around the full perimeter of the fire, where combustible materials and elements are removed to prevent it from reigniting and spreading. Suffolk County Executive Edward P. Romaine said the county was "lucky" the fire…which was on the south side of 27…did not spread further. "We thought the fire would jump the highway, in which case we’d have big problems because that’s where most of the pine barrens are," Romaine said at a Sunday morning news conference. Throughout yesterday, bulldozers and other heavy equipment trucks cleared vegetation to create the buffers. As of 7 last night, the breaks were 60% completed, Sunderman said, adding that the work will continue this morning. A team of 25 detectives, working alongside arson investigators in helicopters, on Sunday began looking into the origins of the fire.

Suffolk County Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina said the investigation includes interviewing all 911 callers.

"We're going to get to the bottom of this," Catalina said. Investigators are still days away from determining the official cause of the fire, he said.

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The Westhampton wildfire has been 100 percent knocked down and 22 percent contained, according to Rudy Sunderman, the commissioner of the Suffolk County of Fire, Rescue and Emergency Services. Speaking at a press conference at Francis S. Gabreski Airport called by Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine and attended by numerous elected and emergency services officials on Sunday morning, Sunderman said previous reports that the fire was 80 percent contained were incorrect. “Knocked down refers to all visible fire. You don’t see any visible fire as we speak,” he said. “Containment refers to the creation of a fire break around the perimeter.” Stephen J. Kotz and Brendan J. O’Reilly report on 27east.com that Sunderman said State Department of Environmental Conservation rangers were working with Suffolk County and Southampton Town crews to use bulldozers and payloaders to create a safe fire break. “We’ll be working today until dusk and be back at it tomorrow” until the job is completed, he added. He said the fire burned about 400 acres and that approximately 600 volunteers from 80 fire departments and 10 ambulance crews turned out to fight the fire. Westhampton Beach Second Assistant Chief Lewis Scott said two commercial buildings were burned, with one being destroyed and the other suffering serious damage. Suffolk County Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina said 25 detectives, including arson specialists, had been assigned to investigate the cause of the fire. “We are going to get to the bottom of what happened,” he said, but he refused to speculate as to whether police suspect arson.

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The Retreat’s Stephanie House Shelter is in need of basic items to help serve its clients. The shelter provides a safe haven and critical resources for survivors of domestic violence. Among the items needed are clothing, toiletries, and school and kitchen supplies. Specifically, The Retreat is seeking women’s clothes in large, extra large and XXL, underwear and slippers; toiletries including shampoo and conditioner, body wash and lip balm; school supplies including 5-subject notebooks, pens and pencils, colored pencils, markers, crayons, and Post-it Notes; for the kitchen, can openers and utensils. As reported on 27east.com, donations may be shipped or dropped off at the main office, 13 Goodfriend Drive in East Hampton, during office hours, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Please include name and contact information along with the donation. More information is available at allagainstabuse.org.

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New York, for the third consecutive year, maintained its high state ranking in Advanced Placement testing, while hundreds of high schools statewide and on Long Island won individual honors, test sponsors reported. John Hildebrand and Michael R. Ebert report in NEWSDAY that the latest results, for 2024, show that New York upped its academic performance while also holding onto its second-place position among states. Rankings were based on the percentage of public-school graduates who passed at least one college-level AP test.

New York tied with New Jersey and was outranked only by Massachusetts, according to testing officials at the Manhattan-based College Board.

A total of 30.7% of public-school graduates in New York, or more than 52,000 students, met the requirements for recognition in 2024, up from 28.9% in 2023, according to College Board. The New York State results topped the national average by more than eight points, ahead of competing states such as Connecticut at 29.5%, California, 28.2% and Virginia, 27.2%

AP exams typically take two to three hours to complete, according to sponsors. Tests cover more than three dozen subjects, ranging from calculus and physics to art history and music theory. The state rankings were announced Feb. 25.

In an earlier posting, College Board named more than 400 public and private high schools statewide, including 107 on Long Island, to its 2024 AP Honor Roll. To qualify, schools must meet specific requirements, such as completion by 40% or more of graduates of at least one college-level course.

"We are pleased that New York continues to be a national leader in AP participation and performance," said JP O'Hare, a spokesman for the state's Department of Education, in an email to Newsday. O'Hare added that the state's intent was to extend such opportunities to students in schools that do not offer AP courses.

In Nassau and Suffolk Counties, top-quality college-level courses for high school students are already widely available, a Newsday analysis found. For example, more than two-thirds of the 122 public high schools located in the region are listed on the latest AP honor roll. Eleven schools offer another college program known as International Baccalaureate.

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Early voting is now underway for the March 18 special election to fill a vacancy on the Southampton Town Board created by former Councilman Tommy John Schiavoni’s election to the NYS assembly. Beth Young reports in EAST END BEACON that former Republican Councilman Rick Martel and Zoning Board member John Leonard, a Democrat, are vying for the seat. Early voting will be held at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Westhampton Beach and the Student Activity Center at Stony Brook Southampton through March 16 at these times:

Monday, March 10, 2025

10:00 AM

6:00 PM

Tuesday, March 11, 2025

7:00 AM

3:00 PM

Wednesday, March 12, 2025

7:00 AM

3:00 PM

Thursday, March 13, 2025

12:00 PM

8:00 PM

Friday, March 14, 2025

12:00 PM

8:00 PM

Saturday, March 15, 2025

10:00 AM

6:00 PM

Sunday, March 16, 2025

10:00 AM

6:00 PM

Voters can vote at their regular polling place on Tuesday, March 18, 2025 from 6am to 9pm.

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Firefighters are returning to the blackened fields near Westhampton this morning to plow firebreaks and knock down hot spots as police continue to investigate whether the weekend brush fires were the result of arson, authorities said…although investigators are still days away from determining the official cause of the fire. They cautioned that a risk remained that the fire could restart. The National Weather Service said the weather is cooperating; it is less likely for fires to spread today, due to calmer weather conditions and a decrease in wind gusts. As reported in Newsday, Suffolk County police are expected to continue an arson investigation into the cause of the fires by using drones and helicopters today. It is not known if the fire started at multiple locations or started at one location and then spread to different spots, police said.

Suffolk County Fire, Rescue and Emergency Services Commissioner Rudy Sunderman said the fire will not be considered completely "contained" until 10-foot breaks are built around the full perimeter of the fire, where combustible materials and elements are removed to prevent it from reigniting and spreading. "As of last night, we were over 60% contained and up at 7 a.m. today, working again with the DEC, county heavy equipment, local fire departments and some drone support ..." Sunderman said this morning. Fire officials were gathering this morning at Francis Gabreski Airport, preparing for the day's operations in the area.

Sunrise Highway is open between Hampton Bays and Westhampton, where the blackened, scorched earth and trees can be seen south of 27 eastbound.

The Westhampton Pines Fire burned 400 acres of dry woodland forest and sparked a massive statewide response in eastern Suffolk County this weekend.