Closed psych center up in flames - Buffalo State Hospital News Articles at Opacity

Firefighters battle flames at Richardson Complex

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - Buffalo's bravest want to know what caused a boarded-up psychiatric center to go up in flames over night.

Firefighters rushed to the Richardson Complex on Forest Avenue just after 3 a.m. on Saturday.

Rescue crews said they immediately called a second alarm when they saw flames shooting out of a second-story window.

The complex has been shut down since the early 1970's, which caused some tense moments for firefighters.

Buffalo Fire Division Chief, Jack Hess explained, "It was the last property I wanted to have on fire because we haven't been in here for years. You don't know what the condition of the buildings are."

He also stated, "Even while the fire was free burning, some of the masonry on the outside collapsed right near some firefighters that were busy on the outside."

Chief Hess said that some firefighters narrowly missed getting hit by a collapsing ceiling while inside.

Luckily no one was injured.

Damage is estimated at $200,000

The Richardson Center Corporation released a statement saying, "We are saddened by the building damage but are glad no one was hurt. Work to seal up the building will take place and we will continue to advance the first phase of development."

This article was written by Luke Smith and published by WIVB on Saturday, April 10th 2010 and NOT owned by nor affiliated with opacity.us, but are recorded here solely for educational use. The photographs featured in the article are randomly selected from the Buffalo State Hospital galleries on opacity.us unless noted otherwise; they may not directly relate to the article subject matter except for the site location - any other relation is purely coincidental.


	Closed psych center up in flames Saturday, April 10th 2010 Luke Smith WIVB Firefighters battle flames at Richardson Complex BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - Buffalo's bravest want to know what caused a boarded-up psychiatric center to go up in flames over night. Firefighters rushed to the Richardson Complex on Forest Avenue just after 3 a.m. on Saturday. Rescue crews said they immediately called a second alarm when they saw flames shooting out of a second-story window. The complex has been shut down since the early 1970's, which caused some tense moments for firefighters. Buffalo Fire Division Chief, Jack Hess explained, "It was the last property I wanted to have on fire because we haven't been in here for years. You don't know what the condition of the buildings are." He also stated, "Even while the fire was free burning, some of the masonry on the outside collapsed right near some firefighters that were busy on the outside." Chief Hess said that some firefighters narrowly missed getting hit by a collapsing ceiling while inside. Luckily no one was injured. Damage is estimated at $200,000 The Richardson Center Corporation released a statement saying, "We are saddened by the building damage but are glad no one was hurt. Work to seal up the building will take place and we will continue to advance the first phase of development." This article was written by Luke Smith and published by WIVB on Saturday, April 10th 2010 and NOT owned by nor affiliated with opacity.us, but are recorded here solely for educational use. The photographs featured in the article are randomly selected from the Buffalo State Hospital galleries on opacity.us unless noted otherwise; they may not directly relate to the article subject matter except for the site location - any other relation is purely coincidental.