Once Lackawanna Fire Chief Ralph Galanti saw the blaze that was consuming the former Bethlehem Steel plant Wednesday morning, he quickly turned over the battle to the Buffalo Fire Department. That was just 30 minutes into the fire.
The fire was too big for Lackawanna’s 50-member fire department. Buffalo has 700.
“Buffalo has the experience and the resources for a fire this size,” Galanti said Thursday as the blaze continued to burn inside the partially collapsed former stripping mill.
Several factors complicate this battle. First, there is the size of the building, 1 million square feet – or about six city blocks.