A month ago, one of the worst fires in recent Roslyn history destroyed the establishments of three local businesses, and left over a dozen people without homes. The businesses have recovered by setting up shop at other, similar locations.

The fire at 19-21 Main Street has left that 170-year-old building a charred skeleton of its former self. Colour to Dye For, a hair salon which had been at the location for the past two years, has moved its operations next door to The Haircutters, 1455 Old Northern Blvd.

Even though she "lost everything" in the fire, Amanda Abad, proprietor of Colour to Dye For, still has her staff with her and is serving regular clients, courtesy of the staff at The Haircutters. Ms. Abad will not make any long-term plans until the insurance situation of the business is finalized. But for the near future, Ms. Abad and her staff will continue working out of the establishment on 1455 Old Northern Blvd.

Ms. Abad recalled her own harrowing account of the July 1 fire. She and her staff were working on the second floor of the building when the fire broke out at around 4:30 p.m. However, it took a good 20 minutes for the staff to realize what was happening. At about 4:50 p.m., Ms. Abad noticed it was getting "godawful hot" in the building. A staff member finally noticed the fire and called 911 while the rest of the staff and their customers fled the building. Ms. Abad also noticed a "puttered out" look in the ceiling and flames coming up through the air conditioning vents. "We thought the whole building would blow up," she said. "We were lucky nobody died."

Fortunately, everyone made it out of the building, which, according to Ms. Abad, "went up like matchbox" under the blaze, or so it seemed at the time. Ms. Abad gave credit to an alarm box and quick work by local fire companies for what property has been salvaged from the fire.

Judy at Townsend is also relocating. That hair salon will be operating out of Scott Allan Salon, 1081 Willis Ave., Albertson. The owner, Judy Edelman is anxious to relocate permanently back to Roslyn, hopefully near her old store on Main Street. Ms. Edelman admitted she has been devastated by the fire. "I can't begin to tell you how much I miss my neighbors," she told The Roslyn News.

Ms. Edelman promises to give the same "personalized attention" to her clients at the new location, but she is also sending out a "distress signal" to anyone in the village who is willing to have a new tenant, one who will treat a new location in Roslyn "as if it was their own home." Ms. Edelman thanked the local fire companies for saving both her appointment book and her "entire business." She also appreciates the concern expressed by Roslyn Mayor Janet Galante. But most of all, Ms. Edelman is looking forward to being back in the "safe haven" that Roslyn's ambiance gave to her business.

Finally, Cammy, a specialized women's clothing boutique, is relocating directly across the street from their old store. Marion Regan, proprietor of Cammy's, hopes to open her new store at 6 Main Street sometime in mid-August. The spot is the former location of Chalet Hair Salon and has been empty for only a short while.

In the meantime, Ms. Regan, like Ms. Abad, is waiting for insurance matters to be taken care of. Although upset by the fire, Ms. Regan is not in the mood for self-pity, as she looks ahead to her new location. "We're fine," she said. "We want the new store to be better than the last one."

In addition to the lost business establishments, the other human factor of the fire was the now-homeless condition of up to 14 people. The names of the tenants have not been made public. Members of two of the families affected were put up in the Gold Coast Inn in Manhasset for six days immediately following the fire, courtesy of The Red Cross and The Salvation Army. St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, located in Roslyn Harbor, recently took up a collection for the families. Numerous other local churches also held charity events to help the homeless families. The current condition of the families and people affected by the fire is unknown.

Authorities with the Nassau County Fire Commission have blamed an apparent short in the building's electrical wire as the cause of the blaze. Arson has been ruled out as a motive. The commission determined that the junction box in the ceiling of the top floor had a short which sent sparks throughout the top level, burning the roof of the building and destroying the entire third floor before spreading quickly to the rest of the building.

Joseph Schwitzer, an official with the fire commission, said the building's age contributed to the enormity of the fire. The building dates back to the 1830s. As such, the cedar shingles were dry, a condition which allowed the fire to spread so quickly to the lower floors.