A suspicious fire destroyed a wooden sanctuary on the grounds of a black church, and federal arson investigators wary of the rash of fires at other Southern black churches were at the scene Friday.
The blaze at Matthews-Murkland Presbyterian Church was reported late Thursday by several residents who saw the flames shooting through the roof. No injuries were reported. The sanctuary building, which dates to 1903, hadn't been used for years. The congregation of 175 black members now worships in a new building 100 yards away.City arson investigators were immediately sent to the scene, Fire Department shift supervisor Charles Moore said. Moore said investigators knew little about the cause of the blaze.
Noting the 26 other fires at black churches since early 1995, fire dispatcher Robert Swensen said authorities "think there was something suspicious about it."
U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents were at the scene this morning.
Matthews-Murkland's pastor, The Rev. Larry Hill, said the church had received "nothing remotely close to anything that could be considered a threat." However, he said one of two sets of wire barriers church members had erected to keep traffic from entering the church grounds had been knocked down Thursday before the fire started.
Hill told ABC-TV's "Good Morning America" Friday that he wasn't certain the electricity had been completely turned off at the building.