The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
TRIAL BY FIRE
Historic neighborhood church too far gone before firefighters were called to the scene
Fire destroyed a historic neighborhood church in a blaze that started the morning of Nov. 10 in Lorain.
The remaining walls and bell tower of Iglesia Del Dios Vivo church, 1714 Reid Ave., will have to be demolished, said Lorain fire Chief Matt Homolya.
The cause of the fire was unknown and it appeared the point of origin was the basement, but an official ruling on those would come later, he said.
“It’s a beautiful old building, but ... “Homolya said. “I feel bad for the congregation, of course.”
No civilians were hurt, but a firefighter was examined for back injuries due to slipping on ice while moving hoses. The firefighter was relieved of duty for the remainder of the shift.
A cornerstone of the building also said it was Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church 1900-1923
The fire was reported about 10:22 a.m. Nov. 10 and first responders found flames coming from the building, Homolya said.
The church was secured and firefighters needed a chainsaw to get in the front door, Homolya said.
Firefighters were not sure where the fire was but proceeded as if it was a basement fire, the chief said.
They found heavy heat and smoke that forced them to back out. The firefighters began taking out windows to ventilate the building, then got into the basement and found it burning, Homolya said.
Once inside, they found the first floor was burned through and pews were starting to slide into the basement. From there, the firefighters attacked but on the first floor realized the fire already spread into the attic, Homolya said.
“With these old buildings like this, this thing being almost a hundred years old basically, the way that they’re built and they’re constructed, the timbers are so dry and large, and there’s a lot of voids, once that fire works its way into there, with the wind that we have today, too, working against us, they weren’t saving anything,” Homolya said. “They were putting themselves at risk more than anything at that point with the extent of damage that was already done. It would have been a total loss regardless, so there was no point in them staying in there.”
The crews backed out and set up a defensive posture, letting the fire burn through the roof to open more room to spray water in, the chief said.
“So right now it’s just a waiting game to let the fire do what it needs to do so we can put it out once the roof’s out of the way, essentially,” Homolya said shortly before 1 p.m.
About 1 p.m., the crews began showering the building again from the ground and elevated nozzles from the trucks.
Firefighters stayed at the scene until after 5:30 p.m.
The last time anyone was in the building was 8:30 p.m. the night before, Homolya said, citing information from the pastor.
A sign at the front of the church listed the phone number for Pastor Noemi Colon, but Colon could not be reached for comment later on Nov. 10.
“Iglesia del Dios Vivo Church of God in Lorain, Ohio, is a Christian congregation serving the Lorain community and encouraging others through a lifechanging Christian journey,” said a listing at the joinmychurch.com website.
“We seek to serve God by working for justice and peace, respect and learn from all the great faith traditions and desire to be known by the love we have for one another,” the description said. The church denomination was listed as Church of God.
A cornerstone of the building also said it was Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church 1900-1923.
The fire happened the same morning as burial services for retired Lorain Fire Department Lt. Joseph J. Furci, whose son, Michael, also serves on the Lorain Fire Department. Joseph Furci received multiple letters of commendation, including for risking his life to save a woman in a 1978 fire.
“It was just a little poetic, I guess, that this great man, we just laid him to rest, and there’s a big fire,” Homolya said.
Upon first hearing the location of 17th and Reid, Homolya said at first he wondered if it would be the church that formerly served as the St. Joseph Overnight Shelter. That building is near the intersection.
“Not that a small church is any better, but that’s a big church and I was thinking, we had all those issues with the homeless staying there for quite a while,” Homolya said. “And that was our biggest concern, what if a fire happens there? ‘Oh, that’ll never happen.’ And here we are.”