LOON LAKE, Sask. 鈥� An early morning fire has destroyed an Anglican church in northwestern Saskatchewan.
Loon Lake Mayor Brian Hirschfeld says the blaze levelled St. George's Church in the village on Saturday morning.
RCMP say no one was in the church at the time and no injuries have been reported to police.
Police say the investigation is in its preliminary stages, and they're asking anyone who saw anything suspicious in the area of the church on Saturday morning, or who has information about the fire, to contact them.
George Rothenburger, who was the secretary at St. George's and was also a lay reader, says the building was constructed in 1938 and still held a community service once per month.
Rothenburger says he learned of the fire when he got a phone call shortly after 5 a.m. on Saturday, and when he got dressed and stepped outside his home, he could see the flames towering into the air.
"It was going hundreds of feet in the air like a torch," Rothenburger said in a phone interview Sunday.
"There was no wind. So thank goodness it was safe for the rest of the town."
The roof had already collapsed by the time Rothenburger got to the scene, but he said the tower with the bell was still standing. It, too, soon fell, and firefighters worked to keep the flames from spreading to surrounding trees.
Hirschfeld, meanwhile, said there's been a lot of crime recently in Loon Lake but he doesn't know if the church fire is related to any of it.
He noted the area's MP, Gary Vidal, has been supportive in connecting the community with organizations that can help with the issues.
"People are concerned that there has been a lot of vandalism over the last four months and maybe this is all part and parcel of it, but we don't know," he said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 29, 2024.
The Canadian Press
