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CROTON-ON-HUSON, N.Y. A fire sparked by a freak snowstorm on Saturday afternoon devastated Antons restaurant on Riverside Avenue in Croton. Croton Fire Department responded to a transformer and electrical wires on fire when the transformer exploded moments later and smoke began pouring out of the restaurant.
Crews were fighting the fire in the basement in very smoky and hot conditions. At one point, part of the first floor in the kitchen area collapsed into the basement, leading us to pull our members out of the basement, said John Munson, first assistant chief of the Croton Fire Department.
One firefighter was assessed by EMS personnel for an injury to his abdomen and another was assessed for dehydration. Cortlandt and Ossining EMS were on scene.
Croton Fire Department put out a second alarm, around 7:30 p.m., about an hour and a half after the fire first started to relieve Croton firefighters. Crews launched an aggressive interior attack on both levels of the building, however, both levels suffered a partial collapse. The blaze was brought under control by 9 p.m.
About 50 Croton volunteer firefighters were on scene, assisted by another 50 volunteers from Montrose, Buchanan, Yorktown and Ossining fire departments until 1 a.m. Sunday morning.
Mayor Leo Wiegman called the restaurant fire devastating.
Millwood Fire Department provided area coverage and subsequently covered almost a dozen separate incidents in Croton while firefighters battled the restaurant fire. The Westchester County Cause and Origin Team is still investigating the cause of the blaze.
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