UPDATE: 11:40 a.m. Tuesday - Arson has not been ruled out as the cause of the fire which destroyed the playground at Island Park Monday afternoon.
The Winfield police and fire departments are jointly investigating the costly fire. It has been classified as "suspicious in nature," according to a joint press release.
Anyone with information concerning the cause of the fire are being asked by investigators to call 911 or the police department at 221-5555.
A reward of $5,000 is being offered by the city for information leading to the arrest and convictions of potential suspects. A caller may remain anonymous by calling Cowley County Crime Stoppers at 221-7777 or 441-7777 and be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.
Officers are asking anyone with video footage or still photos of the area to make copies and deliver them to the police department for investigators to review.
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UPDATE: City manager Warren Porter said this morning that the playground was insured for $240,000. In comments made earlier, he said he was unsure if the playground was covered.
Lois Loucks, who spoke with NewsCow by phone from her home in Onaga, said new parks are costing more to build because of rising material costs.
The fire at the park continued to burn through the night and created a stench for many blocks. It appeared that mostly the bits of tires, used as a safety cushion at the park, were still burning.
It was still smoking this morning at 8 a.m.
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Fire completely destroyed the Island Park playground in Winfield Monday afternoon. No one was injured.
The police department received a number of 911 calls about the fire at 4:45 p.m. The playground was totally engulfed in fire when the first firefighters arrived, said Winfield Fire Department Captain Darrell Long.
"The cause is under investigation," he said. "We have no idea how it started."
There was little firefighters could do to save the playgound because of the materials it was made of.
"We're better off to let it burn. If not, and there is a run-off, you've got petroleum products, rubber and plastic to deal with," Long said.
Police and fire officials closed the park. Long said traffic congestion was a problem for emergency crews trying to get to the scene. The playground had a value of $150,000 to $175,000, according to city officials.
Investigators at the scene would not say if they believed the fire was intentionally started. But police were looking at chalk drawings on cement near the playground and determining if it had any connection to the blaze.
A tearful Lois Loucks who helped spearhead the building of the playground said she was shocked by the news. Loucks, who lives in Onaga, Kan now, said she already received numerous calls from Winfield residents regarding the fire.
It was kind of my baby, she said. But no matter what happened nothing can take away all the wonderful memories and the fun we had building it. That's not lost.
The Winfield park, built in 2004, was so popular with Loucks' grandchildren that she helped organize the building of the LeisureLand community playground at Leisure Park in Onaga.
She said the Winfield park cost about $250,000 to build and was probably worth at least that.
Loucks said officials she'd spoken with so far indicated the fire was intentionally set and she believes that had to be the case.
I don't think a tossed cigarette was going to burn that down, she said. I just don't understand why someone would do that.
City manager Warren Porter doubts the playground is insured since most of the elements of the park and recreation department are individual components, such as shelters and ball fencing.
The city does have a fund for uninsured loss. Eventually, members of the parks and recreation commission, city commissioners and others will decide what to do about the loss.
Porter had been to Island Park and spoke of the thousands of people who contributed to the park project.
"It's the effort that went into it that made it so important," Porter said. "It brought a lot of people together. That was the wonderful part of it."
