Fire destroys 123-year-old church in Greenwood, B.C. | Newz9

A devastating in a single day fireplace in the tiny metropolis of Greenwood, B.C., has razed a historic church, vacant elementary college, one house and a neighbouring storage.

“No lives are lost, thank God,” stated Greenwood Mayor John Bolt, talking to CBC Kelowna on Friday morning. “Everything is under control now.”

Firefighters from Greenwood, Midway and Grand Forks attended the hearth, which is believed to have began in the 123-year-old St. Jude’s Anglican Church at round 2:30 a.m. PT Friday.

Officials say the reason for the hearth is beneath investigation.

Bishop Lynne McNaughton of the Anglican Diocese of Kootenay stated the church has not been used as a web site of worship for quite a lot of years. She stated half of the property had been was a group backyard with beehives. 

“There’s not a congregation that’s been displaced by this,” stated McNaughton. “Obviously, there’s a shock and sadness about the building.

“I spoke to the native priest this morning … and what she stated was that there is nothing of historic worth inside, nothing of financial worth [or] sentimental worth.”

McNaughton said the church was not a designated heritage building.

Midway fire chief Mike Daloise said the buildings were fully engulfed when firefighters arrived.

He said crews worked hard to stop the fire from spreading to adjacent homes, although three did sustain heat damage to their sidings.

Firefighters had switched to mop-up stage by Friday morning, according to Greenwood Fire Chief Roy Terashita, and were thankful for the food locals were delivering to the site to feed them. 

“It was an amazing effort from all three fireplace departments,” said Terashita. 

Hardy Skott, owner of the Copper Creek Country Store located about a block away from the fire, said things could have turned out much worse.

“This may have burned down the entire city,” said Skott. “Embers had been falling from the sky blocks away.”

Skott said he wished officials had alerted residents and business owners when news of the fire broke. He said the area around Greenwood, like many parts of the province, has been extremely dry with a heightened fire risk. 

McNaughton said the community was rallying to support the woman who has been displaced by the fire. 

“My prayers exit to the one that misplaced their house,” she said. “I do know that the Greenwood group will encompass that individual and we have reached out to [her] to say, ‘what can we do?'”

Greenwood is called Canada’s smallest integrated metropolis, with an estimated inhabitants of 700. It is situated in south central B.C.’s Boundary Region.