The FDNY battled a two-alarm blaze at a restaurant in Rockaway Beach that stirred up some ghosts for residents of the neighborhood.
The fire broke out just after 7 p.m. at the Smoke and Barrel BBQ at 97-20 Rockway Beach Blvd., in the same location as the old Boggiano’s Bar and Grill. It stood for three-quarters of a century across from the entrance to Rockaway Beach’s Playland Amusement Park, which drew visitors from across the city to what was known as the Irish Riviera, an alternative to Coney Island on the Brooklyn side of Jamaica Bay.
Firefighters from Engine Company and 47 Battalion arrived on the scene to find heavy smoke conditions emanating from the second floor of the two-story commercial building. The FDNY transmitted a second alarm after the blaze spread into the cockloft area between the roof and ceiling of the establishment, bringing 25 units and 106 firefighters and EMS personnel to the location. FDNY members used saws to ventilate the smoke condition and check for spreading flames.
A firefighter utilized three hose lines to knock down the main body of the fire. Searches throughout the first and second floors proved negative, and the fire was placed under control at 8:08 p.m.
There were no injuries, and FDNY fire marshals will determine the cause and origin of the fire.
Boggiano’s Bar and Grill opened in 1935 and was a frequent destination for beachgoers heading to the A train station one block north at Beach 98th Street and the Rockaway Freeway. The restaurant shuttered in October 2003, a month after owner George Boggiano died.
The location became the Playland Motel a year after Superstorm Sandy ravaged the Rockaway Peninsula in October 2012, ripping the historic Rockaway boardwalk from its concrete pilings and sending debris crashing into beachfront buildings. The 10-foot storm surge damaged or destroyed more than a thousand homes and businesses, displaced thousands of residents, and power and other utilities were knocked out for weeks. The flooding knocked the A train out of action for months as 1,500 feet of track were swept away, leaving the coastal communities along the 11-mile peninsula isolated from the rest of the city.
Meanwhile, the extent of damage inside Smoke & Barrel BBQ remains a mystery. The city’s Department of Buildings received a request from the FDNY at noon on Friday, Dec. 20, to conduct a structural stability inspection at the property. Inspectors arrived at the location 30 minutes later. By then, the FDNY had left the scene and no one was in the restaurant. DOB inspectors tried to gain access to the building, but it was locked up and empty. DOB inspectors returned to the restaurant the following day, Saturday, Dec. 21, but again were unable to gain access, according to a DOB spokesman, who added that during both attempts, inspectors did not see any visible structural issues on the exterior of the building. They left notices on the front door of the restaurant to the property owners, requesting that they contact DOB to schedule a structural stability inspection.
DOB has been in contact with FDNY about the inability to inspect the inside of the building and officials from both agencies are working to contact the owners to facilitate an inspection at the location.
Additional reporting by Lloyd Mitchell.
