Man Inspired by TV Show Forged in Fire Sets Off Huge Blaze, Officials Say
Wonder if he can be charged with stupidity??
Man Inspired by TV Show ‘Forged in Fire’ Sets Off Huge Blaze, Officials Say
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/02/nyregion/fire-upstate-new-york.html?module=WatchingPortal®ion=c-column-middle-span-region&pgType=Homepage&action=click&mediaId=wide&state=standard&contentPlacement=6&version=internal&contentCollection=www.nytimes.com&contentId=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2017%2F12%2F02%2Fnyregion%2Ffire-upstate-new-york.html&eventName=Watching-article-click
Jacey Fortin
Firefighters battled a wind-driven blaze that swept through downtown Cohoes, N.Y., on Thursday. Skip Dickstein/The Albany Times Union, via Associated Press
A fire raged across three blocks in a city near Albany on Thursday after a man tried to forge a piece of metal over a fire in a barrel near his home, officials said.
The fire destroyed three residential buildings and damaged 28 others in the city of Cohoes, displacing as many as 28 people, Shawn Morse, the mayor, said in an interview on Saturday. No serious injuries were reported.
John Gomes, 51, the resident who is accused of starting the blaze near his home, was apparently inspired by “Forged in Fire,” a television series on History (formerly known as The History Channel) in which bladesmiths compete to create swords and other edged weapons.
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He was charged with felony counts of arson and reckless endangerment. He was arrested on Thursday and posted bail of $15,000 on Friday. He could not be reached for comment on Saturday.
“He’s a father of two,” Christopher Ritchey, an Albany County public defender who is representing Mr. Gomes, said in an interview on Saturday. “He’s a hard-working plumber. And this is just a terrible, unfortunate accident, but it’s not a crime.”........................
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