Firefighters in Montgomery County continued to pour water onto a historic church hours after it caught fire Tuesday night. The church's deacon vows to rebuild.
The multiple-alarm fire at the Faith Tabernacle House of Prayer Inc. at 542 DeKalb Street in Norristown, Pennsylvania, began just before 7 p.m. on Jan. 7, 2025. Some people were at nearby churches making meals for the homeless when they heard a "loud boom," Norristown Fire Chief Tom O'Donnell said.
Luckily, everyone made it out of the building, which dates back to the 1800s, safely, O'Donnell said. No one was injured in the blaze or hourslong firefight.
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Dozens of fire companies responded to the church assisting with the fire response, according to a social media post by the Gladwyne Volunteer Fire Company.
Firefighters at first entered the church, but had to pull back to keep everyone safe, O'Donnell said.
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A longtime congregation in a historic building
Faith Tabernacle has been in service for more than 40 years.
"We just had church here Saturday. A good service, about 250 people that attend," ordained Deacon Paul Owens said.
All Owens could do Tuesday night was stare at this church as the firefighters worked in frigid conditions to save the building.
Owens explained that the church is an old library that was converted for service decades ago. The building had major renovations six years ago now.
"It’s a historical building, we remodeled and did a whole lot of good things to it," Owens said. "And to just see all these good memories go like this is a bad thing. It don’t feel good at all.”
Deacon Owens said that the church will rebuild after the fire.
"Trouble don’t last always, and this too shall pass," Owens said.
Fire quickly spread in big building
Firefighters told NBC10 that the fire broke out somewhere in the back of the building on one of the upper floors.
SkyForce10 was over the scene just after 8 p.m. where several firetrucks could be seen with their ladders extended along with firefighters outside of the church.
Lots of smoke was visible coming from the back of the building. By morning parts of the roof had collapsed.
Firefighters continued to douse the building with water before daybreak Wednesday. Flames could be seen still coming from the building around 1 a.m. on Jan. 8, 2025. The fire was finally put under control around 5:30 a.m. Wednesday.
People are urged to avoid the area as roads are closed and icy from all that water and fire equipment. The entire building was covered in icicles as water continued to be poured on it midday Wednesday.
"This was not favorable conditions for firefighters to be operating in, it's very challenging," O'Donnell said.
The building appeared to be gutted as firefighters continued to pour water onto it through Wednesday morning.
"Unfortunately the fire got up into these void spaces -- the walls, the ceilings -- and just ran the entire building," O'Donnell said.
Community looks to support church community
Norristown resident Joe Giovinco -- who witnessed the fire and said he called 911 -- echoed the deacon's message.
"A lot of prayers going out, a lot of sadness, but it's a building," Giovinco said Wednesday. "The church is the people."
"Hopefully they'll get some help, some support from all of us around here and see what happens," Giovinco added.
Investigation into what caused the fire
The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
Besides the fire marshal and local police, the federal ATF was called in to investigate how the blaze began. The ATF taking part in the investigation is standard practice since it involved a house worship.
Investigators focused on the rear of the building where the flames were first reported.
A structural engineer was to be called in to determine the risk for any collapse, O'Donnell said. Nearby buildings would also be examined for any structural damage.
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