IRVINGTON - Two painters blamed for accidentally setting fire Monday to a three-story home on West Clinton Avenue were issued summonses for working without a Westchester home improvement license, police said.
Vincent Liuzzo and Raymond Cipriano, both of Woodbury, Conn., were charged with violating the county licensing law, a misdemeanor, Irvington police Lt. Michael Morano said.
The fire started when the painters were using a heat gun to melt old paint off the house at 60 W. Clinton Ave. and accidentally ignited the wall, Morano said.
No one was home at the time of the blaze and no one was injured. The blaze began as the pair of painters were working outside the first-floor windows about noon, said James Ruffler, Irvington second assistant fire chief.
A fire alarm in the house alerted authorities. Firefighters were greeted by heavy smoke and fire, as flames extended through the walls up to the second floor. The fire was under control within an hour, but firefighters continued working through the afternoon, pulling apart walls on the front of the house to check for more fire.
Irvington, Dobbs Ferry, Pocantico Hills and Elmsford firefighters battled the blaze, while Tarrytown firefighters covered Irvington.
Liuzzo and Cipriano were given tickets to appear in Irvington court on Nov. 9.