Sep 10, 2008 12:16 pm US/Eastern
Arson Not Ruled Out In Playground Fire
BALTIMORE (WJZ) ―
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It was a cornerstone of a community, but now a Waverly playground is in ruins.
CBS
It was a cornerstone of a community, but now a Waverly playground is in ruins. The playground, which was just a few years old, was part of the YMCA facility on 33rd Street. Now people living nearby want answers.
Sally Thorner has the latest on the heartbreak.
"I bring all my kids here every day," one parent said.
There was no shortage of disbelief at seeing the charred playground at Stadium Place.
"And now where are the little kids going to play and the neighborhood kids swing on the swing?" said Tommy Harris.
"I feel disappointed," said Andre.
Plenty of adults feel the same. Three years ago, many helped build the playground. It cost half a million dollars and 3,500 volunteers put the playground together.
That hard work was erased in less than an hour. The fire began around 2 p.m. and its smoke was visible from miles away.
"They arrived here to a very dramatic scene. You could see very heavy, thick black smoke," said Kevin Cartwright, Baltimore City Fire spokesperson.
"It's sort of unbelievable. It's really shocking. I keep saying shocking because that's all I feel today. All of this is worse than we could have ever imagined," said Marisa Canino, president of Friends of Our Playground.
Now that the smoke has cleared, you can see that the wooden and plastic section of the playground is gone. Fire officials say the fire spread quickly, making it difficult to know where the fire started.
Arson has not been ruled out. One young man was taken away by police just as the smoldering stopped.
"I feel sad and I'm angry at whomever did it," said 14-year-old Michael Williams.
Plenty of board members who pioneered bringing a fun spot for kids to the Orioles' former stadium are ready to do it again.
"And we're going to rebuild it. We're going to rebuild it. But today is the wake," said Mary Pat Clark with the Baltimore City Council. "Then we're going to rebuild this playground. You can't keep this community down."
Fire officials are in the neighborhood talking to residents and handing out flyers asking for more information.
Donations and volunteer offers can be sent to:
Friends of the Playground
C/O Greater Homewood Community Corporation
3503 N. Charles St.
Baltimore, MD 21218
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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