Recycler Files Claim for Mismanagement of Fire
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A recycling yard operator whose business burned for a month has filed a more than $10-million claim against the city, alleging the Fire Department mismanaged the blaze.
Archie Crippen alleges the fire got out of control partly because firefighters responded late and made mistakes trying to extinguish it. “They took control of the property,” said Charles Doerksen, an attorney representing Crippen. “They basically said, ‘Get off the pile or we’ll arrest you,’ and then they just screwed things up.”
City officials defended their fighting of the fire, which billowed heavy smoke for days after it started Jan. 11 and which burned debris on several acres.
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