Rockland County DA Updates Public on Spring Valley Fire Investigation

District Attorney Tom Walsh commenting on the Spring Valley fire investigation. Photo by: Jennifer Korn

A community in mourning will not get closure for at least a few more weeks. District Attorney, Tom Walsh, joined County Executive Ed Day and several agencies this morning to hold a press conference regarding the fire at Evergreen Center for Adults last week that killed Spring Valley Firefighter Jared Lloyd and an unidentified resident.  

Officials stated today that they are withholding the identity of the second victim at the request of the victim’s family. 

“We have assembled today the investigative leaders from federal state and local law enforcement agencies pursuing this inquiry into the cause of the Evergreen Fire,” said Walsh. 

The Rockland County Sheriff’s Office, New York State Fire Prevention and Control, and ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) have taken on the cause and origin portion of the investigation. According to Rockland County Sheriff Louis Falco, “those findings will be turned over to the Spring Valley Police Department and the Rockland County District Attorney’s Office,” said Falco.

“I can say to you today with absolute certainty, that the professionals involved will get to the bottom of what exactly happened in Spring Valley at this facility,” said Day. 

Speakers at the conference declined to take questions and no other information was provided. 

“We will be limited in our comments since this is an active criminal investigation which must not be jeopardized,” said Walsh. “However, as much information as can be properly presented will be.”  

“I hope that seeing the number of agencies involved will bring a sense of calm to those who are struggling to understand the process and what happened,” said Day. 

“We are not going to rush this investigation to make people happy to get to the conclusion,” said Falco. “We will reach the conclusion based on where the evidence and the facts take us.”

According to The New York State Fire Prevention and Control, the investigation is expected to take at least several weeks, if not months.

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