Proactive Shoveling Saves Lives: Sayville Family Clears Hydrant Before Fire Breaks Out

NEW YORK(CBSNewYork) -- Timely snowstorm precautions may have saved lives.

A Long Island family cleared a fire hydrant buried by the blizzard, not knowing that it would be used to save their own home from flames the following day.

It may be a chore that's hard on the back and time-consuming, but clearing the fire hydrant on your street or in front of your home could mean the difference between life and death.

Joann and Steve Pascale of Sayville were counting their blessings on Tuesday. Their neighbor's attic caught fire a day after the family dug their hydrant out from beneath three feet of drifted snow.

"Good thing, good for the neighborhood too. If something had happened that fire hydrant takes care of more than one house, could be in trouble," Steve told CBS2's Jennifer McLogan.

The victim's fire extinguisher was no match for the blaze.

The Sayville fire department responded quickly and the chief said he and his firefighters were able to contain the flames.

Precious minutes were saved allowing pets and the family to get out without injury.

"When you have a hydrant completely covered in snow it can take us three to five minutes to clear the hydrant, make an effective work area for us, and every minute that the fire is burning it can double in size," Sayville Fire Chief, William Roderka said.

In Sayville and beyond, some residents appeared to be leaving the job for others, unlike the victims who proactively shoveled their neighborhood hydrant 24 hours before the fire broke out.

Their house is now uninhabitable because of smoke, but the displaced homeowners told CBS2 over the phone that digging out the hydrant is priority number one following a storm.

"I think he did a terrific job of clearing it out, pretty much the neighbors around here stick together," the Pascale's neighbor Kevin Boyle said.

The grateful fire chief is urging residents to clear 3 to 4-ft around hydrants so firefighters can properly hook up their hoses.

In some communities homeowners are required by code to clear hydrants. In other towns it isn't a law, but a duty.