A family returned from Yom Kippur services Friday night to find its Dix Hills home in flames.
The Solinsky family was at temple observing the Jewish holiday when a fire started on the first floor of 47 Buttonwood Drive around 9 p.m.
Flames engulfed the kitchen, foyer and hallway of the ground floor.
"It's gutted," Second Assistant Chief Rob Fling of the Dix Hills Fire Department said.
More than 40 firefighters from the Dix Hills, Greenlawn, Melville and Commack fire departments responded to the call. Fling said it took about 10 minutes to put out the fire. Since the home was unoccupied at the time, no injuries were reported, but the damage did cause the residence to be declared uninhabitable.
"They're not staying here tonight, or the next two weeks," Fling said.
He added that the since the flames engulfed the foyer area, there was a clear path for the fire to take off into the other rooms of the home.
LIPA and National Grid responded to the scene as well to shut off the electricity and gas.
The cause of the fire is unknown. The fire department said that the arson squad is investigating what may have sparked the flames.
