Construction equipment burned in Fayette County, police suspect arson

Several pieces of equipment were damaged in an early morning fire at a construction site next to a hospital in Fayette County and police suspect it is the work of arsonists.

Just after 4 a.m., Fayetteville police received calls reporting the fire.

When officers and Fayetteville Fire Department crews arrived at the construction site next to Piedmont Fayette Hospital, they saw several pieces of construction equipment were on fire.

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The equipment belongs to Brasfield & Gorrie, one of the lead contractors for the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center.

They are also a donor to the Atlanta Police Foundation.

Fayetteville police said it is too early in their investigation to know if the fire is related to the protests that destroyed equipment at the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center construction site.

In March, two protesters climbed a Brasfield & Gorrie crane and chained themselves to it in northwest Atlanta.

A similar situation happened in January in Midtown Atlanta when two protesters chained themselves to another Brasfield & Gorrie crane.

In January, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said there have been more than two dozen attacks in the metro Atlanta area and other states that have targeted companies that have worked on the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center.

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Piedmont Fayette Hospital issued the following statement about the incident:

We are assisting authorities in the investigation of the overnight destruction of construction equipment on our campus. This equipment was to be used in a long-planned project to alleviate parking issues at Piedmont Fayette, which is one of our busiest hospitals, in order to improve ease of access for our patients to medical care.

While any act of vandalism on a hospital campus or in our communities is concerning, we are hopeful that any project delays caused by this incident will be minimal.

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