Liquor store goes up in flames

A mid-morning fire which left smoke hanging in the air over Little Neck early Sunday was caused by faulty wiring, a Nassau County fire official said on Wednesday, citing the results of a preliminary investigation.

The blaze, which gutted a liquor store, prompted a quick response from fire departments on both sides of the Queens-Nassau county border.

The business, Blvd. Wine & Liquors at 1 Northern Boulevard, is located on the east side of Glenwood Street, which divides the Queens neighborhood of Little Neck from the Village of Great Neck in Nassau County.

The fire started at approximately 11:10 a.m. on Sunday morning, according to Chief Kyle Dugger of the Manhasset-Lakeville Fire Dept. in Great Neck.

By noontime Sunday, members of Ladder 164 from Douglaston joined other units from the Fire Dept. of New  York and Nassau County fire officials in pouring water on the still-smoking two-story brick structure.

Though FDNY Emergency Medical Technicians were ready with stretchers at the scene, fire officials reported no injuries as a result of the blaze.

Liquor store owner Yon Woo arrived at the site of his burned-out business shortly after noon, his right pant leg inadvertently tucked into one white sock, seemingly with more questions than answers.

Woo said someone at Little Neck CK Deli on Northern Boulevard called him shortly after 11 a.m. to tell him his business was on fire. "I don't know how it started," Woo said. 

FDNY and the Manhasset-Lakeville Fire Dept. closed down Northern Boulevard from Little Neck Parkway to the Queens-Nassau border in both directions for several hours while responding to the blaze. By 3 p.m Sunday afternoon, the street was reopened for motorists.

Final results of the investigation will be released sometime later this week, fire officials said.