A wave of tragedy struck Abilene as the popular children’s playground Fort Imagination meets its grim demise. In the early morning hours on Friday October 10th, smoke was seen in the distance near the playground and the authorities were alerted of the situation; however, within an instant, the playground was enveloped in a giant, raging fire. They were able to stop it from growing and spreading to its surroundings, but could not stop it from collapsing and burning to ash. It is suspected that the cause of the fire was due to arson from a currently unidentified person.
As the city mourns the loss of the playground, the Abilene Fire Department is actively searching for the culprit of the fire. The leading story is that a bitter person doused the playground and the fence surrounding it with a flammable liquid and set it ablaze when they were sure no one was looking. There were also trash cans that were charred to bits, proving that someone was obviously doing these deeds intentionally.
“Because of the material of Fort Imagination, it’s not something that probably started on its own or from something that was dropped, like a cigarette or something like that,” said Chief Cande Flores. There is most likely more than one perpetrator of this crime, too. “It’s a pretty good indication that it probably had some help, and so that’s where we’re leaning and that’s where our investigation is starting.”
The everlasting joy that Fort Imagination delivered to the youth of Abilene will not be forgotten, and the playground will be remembered by all the residents of the city. As more and more information about the fires and the people come out, the police and fire department will work restlessly until they find and punish the group involved with this malicious act.
