Questions linger about demolition of RFK Stadium after multiple fires break out inside

WASHINGTON - Officials are investigating multiple fires that broke out at RFK Stadium in D.C. Tuesday afternoon.

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D.C. Fire and EMS officials said crews responded to the scene located at 2400 East Capitol St Northeast around 5:20 p.m. Tuesday.

Crews arrived to see smoke coming from the vicinity of Gate C inside the stadium. They entered the building and found at least two fires in the basement level of the stadium. 

It took crews about an hour to get the flames under control.

Officials said no one was inside the stadium at the time.

Investigators are still searching for what caused the fires.

The fires come as questions still linger about when RFK Stadium could be demolished. In 2019, it was announced that the stadium would come down by 2021, but that has not happened yet.

On Wednesday, FOX 5 spoke with Events D.C., which operates the RFK Stadium site, and learned that the group now plans to take the stadium down by 2023.

The company and D.C.'s Deputy Mayor of Planning and Economic Development confirmed to FOX 5 that crews are in the process of taking stock of the hazardous materials within the stadium, and they are applying for permits to being the demolition process.

Officials say they are cautiously optimistic about the timeline of the demolition.

"We still have to go through with our federal partners to make sure they’re aware of what our process will be and what our timeline will be, but the hope is that we’ll be able to get the work completely done by the end of 2023," said John Falcicchio, D.C.'s Deputy Mayor of Planning and Economic Development. "In any of these processes when it takes some federal approval, sometimes it takes a little bit longer than we’d like. But ultimately, we know that there will be no more events in the stadium itself, so we ultimately have to take down the stadium, and we’ll work with our federal partners to get that done."

We still have to go through with our federal partners to make sure they’re aware of what our process will be and what our timeline will be, but the hope is that we’ll be able to get the work completely done by the end of 2023.

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Those federal partners include the National Park Service, which owns the stadium and leases it to Events D.C. and the D.C. government,