ST. GEORGE, Utah, Sept. 14, 2017 (Gephardt Daily) — When the St. George Tabernacle was struck by lightning Thursday morning, the blaze spread slowly in part due to the skills and quality construction practices of the Utah settlers who built the space in 1847.
St. George Fire Department Chief Robert Stoker said the attic beams were thick and strong, and made of dense wood, which helped slow the burn and keep firefighters safer.
“The beams were bigger and heavier because most of them were original,” Stoker said. “They weren’t like the beams used today. Because they were bigger and heavier, they could burn and the building was still structurally sound” because of the remaining wood mass.
That structural integrity also allowed firefighters to quickly access the areas they needed to get to in order to knock the fire down within about 20 minutes, Stoker said. They spent at least another two hours removing charred roofing and fiberglass insulation, to make sure no hidden sparks flared into a fire.
Stoker said the fire calls came in at 9:15 a.m. from construction workers assigned to the building’s renovation, and from witnesses who saw the lightning strike from a nearby shopping plaza.
Crews were on the scene within minutes, Stoker said. The Tabernacle, owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is at 18 S. Main St.
Smoke was coming through the roof when crews arrived, and flames had spread from the roof into the attic of the building.
“We had six engines, two ladder trucks, a rescue truck, and a truck from Washington City,” said Stoker. “We were happy to have the extra manpower, with the size of the building and the concealed spaces.”
Stoker said the Tabernacle has four levels, plus a small area just under the steeple.
The building’s renovation, which came after a previous fire that was larger, was planned to be complete in 2018.
Stoker said the fact that the building is surrounded with scaffolding added danger during the fire, because the lightning storm was ongoing and the metal piping increased the strike danger. Once the storm had completely passed, firefighters did use the scaffolding to gain access to the building’s outside, to search for sparks.
Stoker said no damage estimates were in yet, but investigators remained on the scene Thursday afternoon.
Stoker said his firefighters should be proud of their role in saving a historic building that is meaningful to so many people.
“A few minutes later and it could have been a lot worse,” he said. “It’s nice to look and see a structurally sound building instead of one that burned to the ground.”
