Maki Becker
The Buffalo News, N.Y.
BUFFALO, N.Y. — A Buffalo firefighter was in critical condition at Erie County Medical Center after a mysterious incident at the Blackthorn Restaurant and Pub on Saturday, authorities said.
But no one is coming forward to explain how he was hurt, Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn Jr. said Tuesday.
“I am not getting the best cooperation,” Flynn said.
Here’s what’s known:
Emergency responders were sent to the Blackthorn shortly before 5:30 p.m. for a “rescue call.”
A Buffalo firefighter who was in uniform and had just marched in the Old Neighborhood St. Patrick’s Day parade was badly hurt and was rushed to ECMC, Flynn said.
There were numerous other firefighters in uniform at the bar, Flynn said, along with other St. Patrick’s Day revelers.
“You have a bar full of people who were at this establishment,” Flynn said. " ... There were numerous people around. Right now, let’s just say, that the cooperation is lacking. ... I’ve got a wife with a husband in the hospital now in critical condition. I’ve got a mother with a son in the hospital in critical condition. I’ve got a firefighter, a member of this community who helps protect all of us, whose job it is to save lives, in critical condition in the hospital right now.”
There’s no surveillance video from the scene, he said, adding that Buffalo police are conducting a thorough investigation.
“They’re going to round up every person in that bar, I’m telling you right now,” Flynn said.
He said he has an idea of what happened, but not enough information to make a judgment on whether a crime was committed.
Police previously said “at least two firefighters” were involved.
It’s possible that a crime wasn’t committed, but there’s no way to know that until witnesses provide information, Flynn said.
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