Sisters Lost In LI Fire Mourned: 'World Has Lost 2 Beautiful Lights'

NOYAC, NY — One day after two sisters died in a fire while visiting the Hamptons from Maryland on a family vacation, communities are cloaked in mourning.

The Washington Hebrew Congregation, where Jillian and Lindsay Wiener's father Lewis is president, issued a statement on the unthinkable loss.

"The world has lost two beautiful lights, and the Washington Hebrew Congregation community is heartbroken. Through their leadership and service, acts of kindness, and friendship, the Wiener family — Lewis, Alisa, Zach, Jillian, and Lindsay — has touched so many lives at Washington Hebrew. It was just two months ago that we came together as a community to celebrate with the Wieners when Lew was installed as our congregation’s president. Now, as a community, we will again come together to support and lift up Lew, Alisa, and Zach in every way possible."

Jillian, 21, and Lindsay, 19, were asleep in the home when the fire broke out.

According to Southampton Town Police, Lewis Wiener, 60, his wife Alisa, 52, and his son Zachary, 23, as well as his daughters, were vacationing from Potomac, Maryland. The children were sleeping on the second floor at 3:35 a.m., when the fire broke out, and the parents were sleeping on the first floor; Lewis Weiner awakened to the sound of glass breaking and screamed for his family to get out, police said.

He and his wife escaped the burning home, police said. When they realized the children hadn't exited the house, Wiener tried desperately to gain entry back in; however, the flames prevented him from gaining access, police said. The couple's son Zachary had escaped by leaping out of a second-story window, police said.

"Tragically the two daughters were unable to escape," police said.

Both girls graduated from the Holton-Arms School for Girls in Bethesda, Maryland, the school said in a statement.

Holton-Arms school head Susanna A. Jones also issued a heartfelt statement: "It is with immense sadness that I write to share with you that Jillian ’19 and Lindsay ’21 Wiener passed away on Long Island in an early morning house fire. . . As much of the Holton community can attest, the sisters were warm, engaged members of the Holton community who positively impacted both their classes and the larger school community."

Jillian was a soccer and ice hockey player as well as an artist, and her passions were yoga and community service, Jones said. "A certified yoga instructor, Jillian taught yoga classes to younger students during her senior project. Jillian also devoted hours of her time to raising awareness and funds for families whose children have cancer."

Lindsay, she added, "was a bright spirit and a leader, who was also dedicated to service, particularly getting young people involved in politics and generally promoting volunteerism. As president of the Community Service Club during Covid, she found creative ways to encourage student engagement in service. As president of the Jewish Culture Club, she also did much to educate the community about Jewish religious traditions."

Jillian was headed into her senior year at the University of Michigan and Lindsay was returning to Tulane for her sophomore year, Jones said.

"Jillian and Lindsay’s passing is a great loss to the Holton-Arms community and both will be deeply missed by their family, friends, and the school community," she said.

Southampton Town officials told Patch the home had no valid rental permit, meaning that there had been no inspection of the property to ensure safety.

Ryan Murphy, public safety and emergency management administrator for Southampton Town, told Patch that while the home was rented for the vacation, there was no rental permit on file for the home and therefore, the property had not been inspected. He also said he believes there is "a violation on record from the building department," but did not specify what that violation was.

The homeowners could not immediately be reached for comment.

Murphy said he did not know how the rental was being conducted. "I don't know how they engaged that rental," he said.

He added that, to the best of his knowledge, and based on the town's investigation, there were smoke detectors in the house, but he was unable to say "if they were operational. I can't speak to that."

Murphy said property owners "will be held accountable for renting without the benefit of a permit."

Murphy said town officials work diligently to make sure the town's rental code is enforced but with the proliferation of home-sharing sites, "it's a bit like whack a mole. We might take one of these and bring it into compliance and then two pop up. It's a never-ending search."

Of the fire, Murphy said, "It's a tragic situation. Had there been a rental permit on the property, perhaps additional safety standards might have been in place that could have made this preventable. But," he added, "you can do everything right and still have an accident. It's just nice to be able to say you checked all the boxes."

According to Southampton Town Police, at 3:35 a.m. Wednesday a call came in about a fire at an occupied Noyac home on Spring Lane.

Patrol officers found the residence fully engulfed with the Wieners and their son, who had escaped the blaze, outside, police said. The girls were unaccounted for and believed to be inside the home, police said.

Fire personnel found the girls inside the home; they were transported by ambulance to Stony Brook Southampton Hospital, police said. Although CPR was performed, the girls died, police said.

The other three family members were transported with non-life threatening injuries to the hospital, police said.

North Sea, Southampton, East Hampton, Bridgehampton, and Sag Harbor Volunteer Fire Departments responded to extinguish the fire; Southampton Village, Bridgehampton, Sag Harbor and Amagansett ambulance crews also helped with transports.

The Southampton Town Police Department's detective division and fire marshal, as well as the Suffolk County arson squad, responded to determine the cause of the fire, police said.