Fire destroys 123-year-old church in Greenwood, B.C.

A devastating overnight fire in the tiny city of Greenwood, B.C., has razed a historic church, vacant elementary school, one home and a neighbouring garage.

"No lives are lost, thank God," said Greenwood Mayor John Bolt, speaking to CBC Kelowna on Friday morning. "Everything is under control now."

Firefighters from Greenwood, Midway and Grand Forks attended the fire, which is believed to have started in the 123-year-old St. Jude's Anglican Church at around 2:30 a.m. PT Friday.

Officials say the cause of the fire is under investigation.

Bishop Lynne McNaughton of the Anglican Diocese of Kootenay said the church has not been used as a site of worship for a number of years. She said half of the property had been turned into a community garden with beehives. 

"There's not a congregation that's been displaced by this," said McNaughton.

"I spoke to the local priest this morning ... and what she said was that there's nothing of historical value inside, nothing of monetary value."

McNaughton said the church was not a designated heritage building, but it did contain items of sentimental value that were lost.

Midway fire chief Mike Daloise said the buildings were fully engulfed when firefighters arrived.

He said crews worked hard to stop the fire from spreading to adjacent homes, although three did sustain heat damage to their sidings.

Firefighters had switched to mop-up stage by Friday morning, according to Greenwood Fire Chief Roy Terashita, and were thankful for the food locals were delivering to the site to feed them. 

"It was a great effort from all three fire departments," said Terashita. 

Hardy Skott, owner of the Copper Creek Country Store located about a block away from the fire, said things could have turned out much worse.

"This could have burned down the whole town," said Skott. "Embers were falling from the sky blocks away."

Skott said he wished officials had alerted residents and business owners when news of the fire broke. He said the area around Greenwood, like many parts of the province, has been extremely dry with a heightened fire risk. 

McNaughton said the community was rallying to support the woman who has been displaced by the fire. 

"My prayers go out to the person who lost their home," she said. "I know that the Greenwood community will surround that person and we've reached out to [her] to say, 'what can we do?'"

Greenwood is known as Canada's smallest incorporated city, with an estimated population of 700. It is located in southeast B.C.'s Boundary region.