CHURCH buildings and places of worship have been burned to the ground in the fast-moving wildfires sweeping across parts of California.
Among them is St Mark’s Episcopal Church, in Altadena, which was entirely destroyed by fire, along with many homes near by.
The Rector, the Revd Carri Grindon, posted the news on Facebook on Wednesday, saying that she was “broken hearted”.
“It caught fire at around 6.30 this morning, and is gone. I don’t yet know the extent of the damage to the rest of the campus, but many buildings in the immediate vicinity have burned as well. I have also received word from several members of our community that their homes are gone.”
She held a Zoom prayer service in the evening, saying: “So much remains uncertain, but, in the next days, we will create ways to come together for support, to worship, to grieve, and to comfort one another.
“During the pandemic, a small community of us met for compline weekly, and felt the comfort of our common prayer and loving presence in that challenging time. After this hardest of days for our church, seeing one another’s faces and praying together feels like the best, first step.”
AlamyFire takes hold in St Mark’s, Altadena, on Wednesday
Among the thousands of buildings now known to have been lost to the ongoing fire are other places of worship, which include a Jewish temple and centre, and a mosque, as well as several churches.
Altadena Community Church was lost, as was the nearby Masjid Al-Taqwa mosque. Images of the smouldering remains of the mosque were posted on social media, and a fund-raiser to rebuild it collected more than $90,000 by midday on Thursday. Also in Altadena, the Sahag-Mesrob Armenian Christian School is reported to have been completely destroyed.
In Pacific Palisades, Corpus Christi RC church was destroyed, and the nearby Presbyterian church was badly damaged. The associate pastor, the Revd Grace Dawn Park, posted an image on Instagram of the burned building with the words, “My beloved Church”. Two Methodist churches have been razed.
At least ten people are known to have died so far, but officials say that the death toll will be be higher. About 180,000 people have been told to evacuate their homes.
The wildfires are now consuming thousands of acres in the Los Angeles area. The rapid spread of fires has been helped by 100mph winds, and there were at least five active fires on Thursday. Winds dropped slightly to allow aerial support for crews on the ground. The LA County Fire Chief, Anthony Marrone, said that the number of damaged or destroyed structures is estimated to be in the tens of thousands, and described the Palisades fire as “one of the most destructive natural disasters in the history of Los Angeles”.
One man has been arrested on suspicion of starting a new wildfire in the Los Angeles area. Twenty people have been arrested for looting properties. A night-time curfew is now planned.