Walmart suing fire departments who battled Plainfield blaze, including GFD

Crews deal with a fire at the former Walmart Fulfillment Center in Plainfield in March.

Courtesy photo

More than 30 fire departments -- including the Greencastle Fire Department -- who battled the Walmart Fulfillment Center blaze in Plainfield earlier this year have received notice that they are being sued by the commercial giant.

Greencastle Fire Chief John Burgess, Mayor Bill Dory, City Attorney Laurie Hardwick and members of the City Council have received word from Lewis Wagner Attorneys, Indianapolis, of a notice of tort claim -- the precursor to a lawsuit -- for property loss and damages relative to the March 16 fire.

The amount of damages is still being investigated, the tort claim notes, however the amount is currently known to exceed the $5 million statutory limit of the Indiana Tort Claims Act.

Correspondence from Lesley A. Pfelging of Lewis and Wagner related that the claim is “being sent on behalf of Walmart Inc. and its subsidiaries. The purpose of this letter is to provide notice of intent to pursue a tort claim, if ultimately deemed appropriate, for property loss, loss of inventory, loss of business earnings, loss of use and enjoyment and related damages.”

The claim is based on the “circumstances which brought about the loss, extent of the loss, the time and place the loss occurred ... the amount of damages sought.”

The claim notes that on March 16, 2022 a fire occurred at 9590 Allpoints Parkway in Plainfield and the Greencastle Fire Department “directed and participated in fire suppression activities.”

“Upon information and belief such fire suppression activities and/or command staff functions may have caused, contributed to and/or exacerbated the extent of property loss and damages,” the claim continues.

“Those activities, which are the subject of ongoing investigation included but are not limited to deactivating or disabling the fire suppression system, risers and/or pumps during fire response activities, and/or opening the facility doors which allowed additional oxygen to enter the premises before the fire was extinguished. After these activities occurred, the fire at the premises grew and spread quickly.”

GFD Chief Burgess said his department sent the city’s new aerial truck, Tower 1, and three personnel to the Plainfield scene where they put in a four-hour shift from midnight to 4 a.m. on March 17.

“It was pretty uneventful,” Burgess said his department’s involvement. “They went there and used the aerial truck, and were assigned to put water on some of what were smoldering trailers at that point.”

Commenting on the validity of the pending lawsuit, Chief Burgess suggested it looks as though, “They cast a net to see what they could catch.”

In addition to GFD and the Plainfield Fire Territory, other agencies and departments listed in the claim are Wayne Township, Washington Township (Marion County), Brownsburg Fire Territory, Decatur Township, Consolidated Indianapolis and Marion County, Indianapolis Fire Department, Pittsboro Fire Department, Speedway Fire Department, Danville Fire Department, Pike Township Fire Department, Amo Fire Department, Coatesville Fire Department, Stilesville Fire Department, Lizton Union Township Fire Department, North Salem Fire Department, Indianapolis Airport Fire Department, Jamestown Fire Department, Perry Township Fire Department, Madison Township Fire Department (not Putnam), Monroe Township Fire Department, Mooresville Fire Department, Whitestown Fire Department, Carmel Fire Department, Westfield Fire Department, Bargersville Fire Department, Greenwood Fire Department, Zionsville Fire Department, Martinsville Fire Department, Lebanon Fire Department, Hendricks County Fire Buffs, White River Township Fire Department and the Indiana State Fire Marshal.

In all, 350 firefighters from more than 30 agencies battled the blaze from 11:45 a.m. March 16 until the early morning hours of March 18. Some 28 engines, 25 ladders, nine medics and 12 tankers were deployed in the operation.

Walmart has decided not to rebuild the 1.2 million-square-foot facility that employed 1,000 at the time of the fire.