INTENTIONAL INFERNO

Knoxville Planned Parenthood New Year’s Eve Blaze Was Arson: Fire Department

The blaze gutted the facility amid a renovation, leaving little but remnants of the roof.

A fire that razed the Planned Parenthood clinic in Knoxville, Tennessee on New Years Eve was the work of an arsonist, according to the local fire department. The blaze gutted the facility amid a renovation, leaving little but remnants of the roof. No suspects have been identified. Ashley Coffield, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Tennessee, said at a press conference Thursday, “We are heartbroken at the loss of our beautiful new building, but I’m here to tell you that we are committed to Knoxville and East Tennessee, and we are determined to rebuild. Knoxville wants Planned Parenthood, our patients need us to be here and we are going to be here.” In January 2021, someone shattered the clinic’s glass doors with a shotgun blast while it was closed.