Crime & Safety

RVCFD Wins Nassau Firefighters Museum's BBQ Cook-Off

Rockville Centre Fire Department ties with Bethpage for top prize.

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The Rockville Centre Fire Department took some time off from putting out fires to start one on the grill as the department tied for first place Friday in the Fairway Market and Nassau County Firefighters Museum BBQ Cook-Off.

Rockville Centre tied with the Bethpage Fire Department for first place.

The Independence Day holiday has always been known for great food, exciting recipes and delicious barbecues. In the spirit of the holiday weekend, teams of firefighters from Nassau County competed against each other in a BBQ contest to see who makes the best barbecue ribs and hamburgers on Long Island, while reminding everyone of important barbecue safety tips.

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In the hot summer sun, firefighters cooked up their best BBQ for the judges and the public. Dedicated fire department teams showed up as early as 6 a.m. in order to smoke their ribs for hours. 

The BBQ Grilling Throwdown was sponsored by Fairway Market, which supplied each team of firefighters with a $100 shopping card to pick up their ribs, burgers or chicken, toppings, secret ingredients and spices.

Equipped with slow cookers, barbecues, smokers and fire department t-shirts, volunteer firefighters put their cooking skills to the test by preparing their signature firehouse ribs and burgers for the judges.

“This was a great hometown event that brought together some very talented firefighter chefs,” said Angelo Catalano, Nassau County Firefighters Museum & Education Center Board President. “The firefighters did a fantastic job at the grill, and we all enjoyed some of the best burgers and ribs on Long Island."

The first-place winning teams received a $500 gift card to Fairway and a trophy from the Nassau County Firefighters Museum. The second-place team received a trophy from the museum.

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In addition, the Nassau County Firefighters Museum gave all participating fire departments free smoke detectors. 

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