St. Paul playground ruined in fire

A fire destroyed a St. Paul playground Wednesday night.

While the blaze is suspicious, officials haven't yet ruled out accidental causes, St. Paul Fire Marshal Steve Zaccard said.

Police interviewed several kids and adults who were near Baker Park on the city's west side, but did not uncover useful leads, he said.

No one was hurt, Zaccard said, but the heat from the fire was so intense it damaged the nearby recreation center.

Firefighters responded around 7:30 p.m. to the park on the 200 block of Page Street West. By the time they arrived, the playground was fully engulfed in flames.

Thick, black smoke was visible from as far as Harriet Island. Hilary Novacek Bundt lives a 15-minute walk from Baker Park, and she said the incident has raised concern for young families who recently moved into the area.

"We've been in the neighborhood for eight years, and so we're used to the things that happen," she said. "But for something like that to happen in the middle of the day, that's out of the ordinary for sure."

The part of the playground that burned down was meant for toddlers and younger kids, Bundt said. "I know it makes me, personally, really sad," she said. "It means that a lot of the kids. They're going to have a lot of questions about who would ruin their playground.

"There's a lot of kids that go to school there and have their summer program there that, when they come back on Monday are going to wonder like, 'What happened?'"

Zaccard estimated the damages to the rec center to be around $6,000 and the damage to the playground about $25,000.

The city's insurance policy covers the property and the playground equipment, said Clare Cloyd with St. Paul Parks and Recreation. A claim to replace the playground was filed Thursday morning.

Correction: An earlier version of this story placed the park in another city with a similar name to the neighborhood. The story has been updated.