Early morning fire destroys 140-year-old Union County church

ELIZABETH — Fire destroyed a 140-year-old church early Sunday morning.

Flames shot into the sky around 3 a.m. from the Shiloh Baptist Church on Murray Street as city fire fighters arrived, neighbors told ABC 7 Eyewitness News.

Elizabeth fire chief Thomas McNamara also told ABC 7 Eyewitness News the church was fully engulfed in flames and that the fire went to four alarms before being brought under control.

Elizabeth mayor Chris Bollwage told New Jersey 101.5 the church dates back to 1879 and is one of the oldest in the city. The mayor said the roof of the church completely collapsed in the fire.

No was injured inside the church during the fire, according to Bollwage.

The front facade of the church was the only part of the building left standing, as seen in a report by CBS New York, with water running out the front door as parishioners set up chairs for Sunday morning service.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation.

In the same report by ABC 7 Eyewitness News, McNamara said firefighters worked to keep the fire from spreading to nearby buildings, including an apartment building under construction across the street.

Nearly 1,500 PSE&G customers in the area around the church are without power because of power line affected by the fire.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ

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