TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WIVB) – A very dangerous situation forced an entire street into lockdown, and Ken Ton Schools did not let anyone in or out. All of this happened after police say a man set a house on fire during an apparent domestic dispute. Monday afternoon, police say the suspect is still unaccounted for.
Firefighters were called to the scene of a blaze on Fries Road, in the Town of Tonawanda, around 9:20 a.m. Monday. Fire crews stayed back from the home, because the person inside the home reportedly had a gun.
When Town of Tonawanda Police say when they arrived on the scene, they heard gunshots from the home. Because of that, they stayed back and let the fire burn.
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Town of Tonawanda Police say a woman called police about a man inside the house, now identified by police as 60-year-old Joseph Hollywood, with a gun. The woman told police the man inside the home threatened to kill her. Bado says no one has been shot.
Town of Tonawanda Police released the included photo of the suspect. They say Hollywood is considered armed, and if anyone sees him they should call 911.
Bado said, “From the initial call it sounded as if he was just determined to die today, one way or another, gave her that indication and gave her an opportunity to leave the home. It becomes really unpredictable when you have someone who is in this particular mental state, where they have just determined the die, so they have nothing to lose. The potential scenarios are numerous. The threat to officer safety, firefighter safety to resident safety percentage goes up dramatically high.”
On Twitter Monday morning, police asked residents within ¼ of mile from 163 Fries Road to shelter in their basements. Ken Ton School District buildings were in lockdown. Around 1 p.m. Tonawanda Police lifted the lockdowns.
Town of Tonawanda Police released information on Twitter, saying residents in the area of Fries and Eggert Roads will lose power. National Grid is cutting power to the area and it is unknown how large of an area will lose power.
According to the Associated Press, Bado says Hollywood is well known to police. Officers have had 18 encounters with him since 2003 for complaints such as harassment and disorderly conduct and domestic disputes.
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