For the Buford community, this year’s Thanksgiving Day ended in a devastating loss. Fire trucks could be heard speeding into the heart of Old Town Buford from all directions and with that many units responding, the call had to be big.
The Gwinnett County 911 Center received a call reporting a fire at the First Pentecostal Church of Buford at 15 East Moreno Stree on Thursday, Nov 28t. The call came in at 10:02 p.m. and fire crews arrived at the scene at 10:06 p.m.
“When our crews showed up (to the scene), they saw black smoke coming out of the front of the building,” Ryan McGiboney, Captain in the Public Information Office for Gwinnett County Fire and Emergency Services said. “They made entry and tried to find the seed of the fire. The fire intensified rapidly and that’s when we had to pull the crews out (of the building) for safety.”
Shortly after they pulled out of the building, the structural integrity of the church began to rapidly decline. The flames soared into the sky with an intense heat and it wasn’t long before the roof and floor systems could be heard collapsing.
Fire crews began to battle the flames from the air using four ladder trucks, as well as firefighters on the ground using attack hoses. In order to get enough water flowing into the structure, the fire department had to tap into hydrants a block over. The crews took a defensive stance on the fire to keep it from spreading to nearby buildings.
The church was constructed in three different sections with the oldest section dating back close to a century ago. Around this area, buildings of that age were constructed using mostly heart pine. Heart pine can be highly flammable due to the turpentine in it.
While the first two sections are pretty much a total loss with only the brick remaining in most areas, the fire did not make it into the back section of the building. However, there is intensive water and smoke damage.
Gwinnett County Fire and Emergency Services deployed five engines, four trucks, two med units, three command vehicles, a PIO, a fire investigator and an Air and Light unit to the scene of the fire. One squad was called into action which is about 40 firefighters. Fire Stations 14, 26, 24, 29, 18, a district chief and Battalions 3 and 4 were called to the scene.
.Although the church congregation gathered for a Thanksgiving meal earlier in the day, the church was largely empty at the time the fire broke out. There are no reported injuries among those connected to the church or with any of the fire crews that responded to the scene.
Members of the church rushed back to the scene last night heartbroken to see their place of worship engulfed in flames. They may be devastated but they vow to rebuild and will be looking for a temporary place to hold their services.
