March 15--Firefighters continued to battle a blaze at South Austin Christian Church late Friday in a smokey fire that officials called a "total loss."
The church is located in the 200 block of East Annie Street, just one block east of South Congress Avenue, an area crowded with people attending nearby South by Southwest events.
Heavy smoke poured from the small, white church as the fire tore through the building's attic space eventually burning its way through the roof. Firefighters had to move to a defensive positions, moving out of the building and breaking windows in order to spray water into the chapel.
The original call came in at about 9:40 p.m. When firefighters arrived, the fire appeared to be isolated to the back portion of the church. As they began to extinguish the fire, they found it had already spread into the attic, an Austin Fire Department spokesman said.
Heavy smoke caused police to close a portion of Nickerson Street in order to prevent pedestrians from inhaling smoke. A gray haze settled on Congress Avenue, where several people took photos and videos.
Dozens gathered near the fire, marvelling as visible flames erupted from the back of the chapel.
Andy Weinberg, the man who initially called 911 and alerted authorities of the fire, said he could see flames shooting from the windows of the building at the rear of the church. Weinberg lives behind the church. He banged on neighbors doors, some who had settled in for bed, and let them know of the fire.
Another neighbor, Tobin McGill, said the church has a small congregation consisting mostly of elderly people.
Copyright 2014 - Austin American-Statesman
