Last Updated:
Fire Destroys Part Of Camp For Ill Children
A fire on Friday evening destroyed a large section of Paul Newman s Hole in the Wall Gang Camp for seriously ill children in Connecticut.
A fire on Friday evening destroyed a large section of Paul Newman s Hole in the Wall Gang Camp for seriously ill children in Connecticut. It was not immediately clear if anyone was working at the camp at the time of the fire and the origin and cause of the blaze were being investigated by federal, state and local authorities.
The camp, with extensive medical facilities on site, was founded by Newman in 1988 in the woods of eastern Connecticut, with a Western motif inspired by the late actor s movie “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.”
He said at least six other local departments assisted in putting out the fire.
“There was a heavy, heavy fire,” he said. “That section of the structure was burning pretty hard and it was close to the dining hall. It was very hard work that saved that.”
Borgman said it took about 90 minutes to bring the fire under control and firefighters were also able to save the camp’s infirmary.
It was not immediately clear if anyone was working at the camp at the time of the fire and the origin and cause of the blaze were being investigated by federal, state and local authorities.