Some of you may not know this, but at the ministry I've helped out with here in Cincinnati (DNC) while I've been at GBS was ransacked by a fire that took out a few rooms and pretty much ruined the rest of the place. According to the investigators** it was started by an individual who entered through the lower entrance on Saturday (4/27/13). Upon entering, the individual went to various places downstairs and began placing things by the door to steal after the fire had already been started. At some point they then went to the furnace room and got the lawnmower which was being stored there. After they towed it across the hall to the conference room, they then stacked books and bibles on the table and placed the overturned lawnmower on-top (so the gas would leak out). We would guess that this individual then lit it, shut the door, and went upstairs where they then tried to steal more. At one point they realized the fire was officially out of hand and figured they had better get out quicker than originally planned (Yes, I create rhymes all the time-jk), so he dropped the stuff he was carrying and ran downstairs. After grabbing a Hawaiian necklace lying on the table (the only object identified as missing at this point) he exited the building. The funny thing is that the guy had a key! So made if fairly easy for investigators.. the proof lies in the pudding - he unlocked the church upon entering, and locked it back up after exiting - Pretty stupid!
The investigators said it was arson and are in search of the suspect. Hopefully the culprit will be found.
As of today (5/4/13) (I believe) work has been in progress for three days. Thankfully no one was injured, and the church did have enough insurance. The church should be back in order in under 6 months. For now the services will be held elsewhere...
**(All information is mostly true based upon the evidence but my be somewhat skewed - we haven't exactly interviewed the person who did it.)
Upstairs Sanctuary #1:
Upstairs Sanctuary #2:
Upstairs Sanctuary #3:
Steps to Downstairs:
Downstairs Hall:
The office they broke into:
My amp that I'll HOPEFULLY get replaced (along with $150 of other electronics,etc)
Sound System:
This was the wall clock:
Lighting Upstairs:
Projector:
This was kind've neat - melted plastic from the lighting on the seats.
Hall:
Pastors Study:
Food Pantry:
Bathroom Area:
Teen Sunday School Room:
Large Room #1:
Large Room #2:
This is the room that the fire was started in:
Conference room:
Stairs:
Nursery:
Foyer:
Initially I thought the fire was much worse - so thankfully structurally almost all is still sound. However, because of the smell and filthy residue that covers EveryTHinG - some (or most) may have to be replaced as well (Such as: songbooks, ceiling tiles, piano, etc.) Other items like, projector, lighting, all wiring, sound-system, amp, and most all other electronics will definitely have to be replaced. Downstairs - most will be gutted and replaced. After the firemen got a chance to access the possibilites of what could've happened they said, "it would've been much worse had it gotten some more oxygen". Because the fire couldn't get enough oxygen, and because the building was sealed up tight, it began to wane after a while. Thankfully it the fire wasn't any worse! Still, it was bad enough!
I'm sure the pastor and church would appreciate your prayers... fire's are huge headaches!! You can pray that the church is united, and grows through this, for transitions in and out of various buildings while it's restored, and for the sanity of the pastor and those directly involved with insurance,etc. This summer I'll be going home to get in some long work hours, but hopefully when I see it in the fall, all will be back to normal again.
