Evicted tenant charged with Cedarhurst arson

A Cedarhurst man angry about being evicted from an apartment building at 97 Cedarhurst Ave., lit eight separate fires in his apartment, 3H, which resulted in a blaze that “fully engulfed” the residence and forced the complete evacuation of the 57-unit building on Jan. 16, according to police.

Douglas Drummond, 53, was charged with second-degree arson and was arraigned at First District Court in Hempstead on Jan. 17, police said.

The fire was first reported at 2:30 pm on Friday, officials said. Eight fire departments, including the Lawrence-Cedarhurst department, responded to the scene. Both Drummond and another man, 24, from an adjacent apartment were taken by police ambulance and LCFD ambulance to Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow for smoke inhalation. 

Drummond, who had to be rescued from a burning bathroom, remained in custody. The other man was treated and released. No other injuries were reported. Several apartments sustained water damage. Clean up of the apartments had begun last Saturday.

Several building tenants were displaced due to the fire, which forced the closure of Central Avenue in both directions for several hours. The Red Cross was at the scene to assist the displaced residents.