by | Dec 22, 2023 6:22 am | Comments (0)
DERBY — David Lenart’s podcast “The Volley Chief” returns with its third episode reflecting upon the explosion of the River Restaurant in downtown Derby. The tragedy happened 38 years ago this month. In this episode, Lenart interviews Mike Witek about the rescue effort.
Click play to listen.
Continue reading ‘Volley Chief Podcast: River Restaurant Retrospective, Episode 3’
by | Dec 15, 2023 10:05 am | Comments (0)
DERBY — The River Restaurant explosion was 38 years ago this month. Former Derby Fire Department Chief David Lenart’s podcast ‘The Volley Chief’ is dedicating a series of episodes reflecting upon the disaster.
In this episode he interviews his father, Thomas Lenart Sr., one of the first arriving members on scene. Lenart is a retired Derby Police Department Sergeant and is currently the chief of the Storm Ambulance & Rescue Corps.
Click play to listen.
Continue reading ‘River Restaurant Retrospective: Episode Two’
by | Dec 6, 2023 9:10 pm | Comments (0)
DERBY — Wednesday was the 38th anniversary of the River Restaurant tragedy on Main Street.
To mark the date, The Valley Indy produced a one-hour livestream Wednesday night featuring “One Moment In Derby” a powerful 1985 WFSB special report on the incident and its aftermath.
The livestream also features the report on the gas leak from the National Transportation Board, and a 2015 interview with former Derby Fire Chief James Butler.
Please click play to watch.
Continue reading ‘Remembering The River Restaurant Explosion’
by | Dec 5, 2023 1:18 pm | Comments (0)
DERBY — A new podcast from a former fire chief will look back at the River Restaurant explosion, the 1985 Derby disaster that took the lives of six Valley residents.
“The Volley Chief” podcast was recently launched by David Lenart, a former Derby Fire Department Chief. Lenart’s father, Thomas, then a Derby police officer, was the first person on scene at the Main Street blast.
The “Volley Chief” will feature a series of episodes looking back at the accident from the view of emergency responders such as police, firefighters and EMS crews.
The first episode of the series was released on Dec. 5, one day before the incident’s 38th anniversary. The first episode provides an overview of the series, and features Valley Indy reporter Eugene Driscoll as a guest.
Subscribe to Volley Chief wherever you get your podcasts.
Click the play button to listen to the first River Restaurant show.
Continue reading ‘River Restaurant Retrospective: Episode One’
