It's interesting how Ron Thompson died prematurely shortly after PDO . "Man who bulldozed through Colo. town is dead", "Granby Rampage Damage Expected To Exceed several Million", "Crews Begin Dismantling Granby Bulldozer", "Rampager was surprised his plans went unnoticed", "Rampages Tanks, Bulldozers, Whatever You Got! Related. In total, he did about $7 million worth of damage. [5] Heemeyer fired many bullets from his semi-automatic rifle at Cody Docheff when Docheff tried to stop the assault on his concrete plant by using a scraper, which was pushed aside by Heemeyer's bulldozer. He endangered the lives of the police officers, destroyed several emergency vehicles, and could have killed several innocent civilians if it wasn't for the actions of law enforcement who managed to evacuate buildings before they were destroyed. Tourism is a draw in the area, though Granby is hardly the center of it. Heemeyer then killed himself with a handgun. [9] Despite the great damage to property, no one besides Heemeyer (by a self-inflicted gunshot wound) was killed in the event. It's a cross that I am going to carry and I'm carrying it in God's name. [10][11] According to Grand County commissioner James Newberry, emergency dispatchers used the reverse 911 emergency system to notify many residents and property owners of the rampage going on in the town. Incredibly, no one else was injured in the rampage. "I just think he set things up to the point where you would have to say no.'" [5] The sheriff's department also noted that eleven of the thirteen buildings Heemeyer bulldozed were occupied until moments before their destruction. More than once he referred to his past grievances and now his current plan of mayhem as a cross he carried in Gods name. The sheriff's department argued the fact that no one was injured was not due to good intent as much as to good luck. In certain circles, 4 June marks the anniversary of "Killdozer Day," a 2004 rampage in the city of Granby, Colorado, that damaged more than a dozen buildings and left one person (Heemeyer) dead. At one point, a SWAT team member dropped a flash-bang grenade down the exhaust pipe of the Killdozer to no effect. The destruction he caused amounted to $7 million in damages. It's up to you, however, to decide if he should be hailed as hero. They agreed, but then he wanted $375,000 and at some later point wanted a deal worth approximately $1 million. Casey Farrell, the owner of a hardware store that was destroyed by Heemeyer, said that it took him more than seven years to rebuild, and that Heemeyer's rampage took more than a financial toll on the town: First, he rammed the home of the mayor and the town hall and library. The cameras were protected by bulletproof Plexiglas. In the case of the local newspaper, the Sky Hi News, the editor who had always run his letters of complaint ran out the back door as Heemeyers bulldozer crashed through the front. Inside The Shocking Revenge Story Of Marvin Heemeyer And His Killdozer. On his list of targets were: the bank, the electric company, the newspaper, a construction company, the police station, the former mayors home, the town hall, the library, and the hardware store. Brian Brainerd/The Denver Post/Getty Images. Not only did Heemeyer level buildings and crush cars, but he fired indiscriminately at police thankfully missing. Outraged over the outcome of a zoning dispute, he armored a Komatsu D355A bulldozer with layers of steel and concrete and used it on June 4, 2004, to demolish the town hall, the former mayor's house, and other buildings in Granby, Colorado. Certain facts remain indisputable: No weapons or guns have been produced, least of all any kind of a .50 caliber weapon, and no one was hurt or injured during the 2 to 3 hour melee, save for Marvin Heemeyer, who was found dead inside of the cab of the vehicle at 20 AM Saturday morning, after SWAT and sheriff's deputies spent an hour using a cutting torch and 3 separate blasts with military . He inflicted damage of around $7 million. And that is what is happening.Im not going to get even. About a minute later, one of the SWAT team members who had swarmed around the machine reported hearing a single gunshot from inside the sealed cab. Wikimedia CommonsA rare photo of Marvin Heemeyer, the man who built the infamous killdozer. 27 June 2014. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Granby slapped him with $2500 in fines. Though authorities tried to destroy the vehicle multiple times, the killdozer proved resistant to small arms fire and resistant to explosives. This material may not be reproduced without permission. "Man Who Bulldozed Granby Says He Got Idea from God." This sparked another battle between Heemeyer and the city of Granby he claimed that the newly approved plans for the concrete plant would block his only street access, requiring his customers to pass through Mount Park Concretes property to get to his muffler shop. Nobody was killed during the rampage. He joined the Air Force in 1971, during which time he had his first introduction to the state of Colorado while stationed there. As I said in the opening line, depending on who you ask, Marvin Heemeyer is either a folk hero and patriot or hes a deranged lunatic and domestic terrorist. "I think God will bless me to get the machine done, to drive it, to do the stuff that I have to do", he said. The sheriff's department argued that the town was lucky that nobody was killed, considering that eleven of the 13 buildings were occupied moments before they were destroyed bythe "killdozer". He drove the machine out of his shop through the wall, then plowed through the concrete plant, the town hall, a newspaper office, a former judges widows home, a hardware store, and other homes. Marvin John Heemeyer (October 28, 1951 -- June 4, 2004) was an American skilled welder and owner of an automobile muffler shop. [5] There might have been casualties if local emergency response hadn't worked so effectively. Really Great. Maybe Heemeyer wasnt specifically out to kill anyone, though he seemed ready and willing to kill if it became necessary. With him, he brought two handguns. It's a cross that I am going to carry and I'm carrying it in God's name.". [2] However, he was eventually forced to jump off to avoid being hit with debris. "It's just disturbing. It all depends on who you ask. His final step was to mail his tape recordings to his brother and climb inside his tank. [14], Various problems arose as Heemeyer destroyed the Gambles hardware store. Some time after military service, he returned to Colorado where he ran a chain of successful muffler shops in the Denver area. "Sometimes reasonable men must do unreasonable things. According to the "folk hero" version of Killdozer Day, Heemeyer only attacked buildings, not people, owned by those who had done him wrong, and made an effort not to harm any of the town's general population or property.