Recycling Center Destroyed by Blaze

A fire destroyed a recycling center Saturday as it tore through the building and through the roof, the East Farmingdale Fire Department said.

More than 200 firefighters from East Farmingdale and at least nine other companies battled the fire that broke around just afternoon. About 5 p.m., one fire marshal on the scene said they would remain on the scene for several more hours. 

At 7:30 Saturday night, a request for relief firefighters was issued. The building is within the East Farmingdale fire district, which said recycled items are sorted in the building. The scene was under the command of East Farmingdale Chief of Department Kilbridge

The area around Paragon Recycling and Transfer on Dale Street in West Babylon was still thick with smoke in late afternoon, though most of the fire was out. Small piles of materials from the inside of the building continued to flame up in the lot behind the building.

Because of reports of possible lightning, firefighters moved off the ladders used to extinguish the blaze in the upper region of the buildings.