PORTLAND, Ore. — A fire rapidly burned through a two-story church building in Northeast Portland's Cully neighborhood Tuesday night, destroying part of the church, according to Portland Fire and Rescue.
At 9:37 p.m., fire crews responded to the fire near the C3 Church in the area of Northeast Lombard Street and Northeast 57th Avenue. Two people called 9-1-1 and reported heavy fire coming from the roof. Firefighters arrived to the church five minutes after being dispatched and saw flames coming from the roof and the back of the structure, according to Portland Fire.
The first battalion chief pulled crews out of the building at 9:47 p.m. due to the "heavy fire volume and roof collapse danger," Portland Fire said in a news release. Fire crews focused their efforts on putting the fire out from outside the building.
Around that time, firefighters reported that there was the potential for the fire to spread to a nearby restaurant and a newer church. As crews worked to prevent the other structures from catching fire, Northeast Lombard Street between 56th Avenue was closed in both directions. The road reopened by Wednesday morning.
Firefighters reported that the back and left side of the church had collapsed just before 10 p.m. The collapse allowed crews to more precisely attack the fire and it was mostly extinguished 10 minutes later, Portland Fire said.
No one was injured. Investigators are looking into the cause of the fire, but Portland Fire said it may take time to complete due to the unstable structure.
The church was being used for storage for the newer church next door, according to Portland Fire.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
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