Via The Fire Island Pines Historical Preservation Society

Former anchorman Andrew Kirtzman, who bought legendary club Pavilion in 2010 and expressed his desire to turn it into "a gay utopia," wandered through the wreckage of the club yesterday, telling the Times, "It’s shocking to me... The Pines needs a beautiful night club. To the people who live in the Pines, the Pavilion was like our church." A Fire Department spokesman described the Pavilion as "the bread and butter of this community.”

Robert Weber, director of operations for Fire Island Pines, told Newsday that the company hopes to reopen the Pavilion by next summer. "They're going to build as aggressively as possible. This is the nucleus of Fire Island Pines." P.J. McAteer, owner of the popular Sip N' Twirl club in the ruined LaFountain building, said his business would be back. "The Pines is an institution, we are a community, and we will rebuild," he said. Brookhaven Supervisor Mark Lesko said the town will work with property owners to "fast track" applications to rebuild.

The cause of the fire is still unknown, though no foul is suspected. The Times reports that 43 Long Island fire departments responded to the blaze and worked overnight to contain the fire. One (unoccupied) home was damaged, but no injuries were reported.