Church Loses Sanctuary During Choir Practice

Being in the church insurance business, this story really hurts:

The sanctuary of a large La Crescenta church was destroyed Wednesday night in a fast-moving fire with flames that at times leaped 100 feet into the sky.

The blaze, reported shortly before 8 p.m., occurred at the Christian Life Church at Montrose and Ramsdell avenues.

Glendale Fire Department officials said the blaze was brought under control shortly after 9 p.m. But along with the destroyed sanctuary, parts of the building — including La Crescenta Christian School — suffered extensive smoke and water damage.

Arson investigators were examining the site, but no cause had been determined and no injuries were reported.

More than 60 firefighters from Glendale and other neighboring departments battled the blaze. Initially, firefighters entered the building to try to contain the flames, but they were pulled outside after portions of the roof started to collapse.

I've had a couple of fires at my client's churches in the past and it's no fun for anybody. Rebuilding is a long and difficult process, and the congregation will have to scramble at Christmastime to find another place to meet and continue their services.

I saw the video of this fire on the evening news (and again this morning) and this fire spread very quickly and took out the whole sanctuary. My heart goes out to those folks.

UPDATE: More info and video here. My buddy John got a first hand look as this fire was only a few hundred feet from his home. He expects that his church will be offering to share space with these folks, which is how it should work among fellow Christians.