Ten fire departments came to the aid of Hickory Grove Baptist Church, when a fire broke out Thursday morning.

A passer-by called in the fire at approximately 10:42 a.m. No one was reportedly at the church when the fire started. According to Sampson County Deputy Fire Marshal Prentice Madgar, by the look of the damage, the fire was noticed rather quickly after it began.

“It didn’t look like it had been burning long,” Madgar commented.

Fire departments responded on scene at 10:45 a.m. Herring Fire Department is about 5 miles from the church. They were able to respond to to the call within three minutes and, when they arrived on scene, there were flames showing. Spivey’s Corner was the second department on scene and they assisted in putting out the flames.

It was easy for Herring and Spivey’s Corner to contain the fire once they began working on it. According to Madgar, it took less than 15 minutes for the departments to contain the fire.

Herring Fire Department was the primary unit called out to the scene. Mutual aid fire departments included Spivey’s Corner, Clement, Halls, Clinton, Plain View, Roseboro, Vann Crossroads, Newton Grove and Salemburg.

There were no injuries and most of the damage was to the exterior of the building. The church did have some smoke damage inside. The monetary damage is still unknown at this time.

Most of the fire departments cleared the scene by 12 p.m., but the Sampson County Fire Marshal’s Office and State Bureau of Investigation remained on scene until 4:50 p.m.

The Fire Marshal’s Office wants to rule out all possible ignition sources in the area, such as electrical outlets, before they can definitely rule out whether foul pay was invloved.

“Right now, we’re looking at everything,” Madgar stated. Currently, it is unclear what caused the fire.

The investigation has been a joint one between the Fire Marshal’s Office, Sampson County Sheriff’s Office, SBI and the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives. However, the investigation has been handed over to SBI.

The church is unable to repair the damages on the educational wing of the sanctuary until the SBI clears them to do so. However, church members were allowed to board up the windows to prevent further damage. Services and other church activities can continue inside the building since there were no reasons for investigators to shut off the power.

A Thursday fire at Hickory Grove Baptist Church took less than 15 minutes to be contained.
https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/web1_fire1.jpgA Thursday fire at Hickory Grove Baptist Church took less than 15 minutes to be contained. Brendaly Vega|Sampson Independent

The church looks untouched to those that pass by it on the road.
https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/web1_fire3.jpgThe church looks untouched to those that pass by it on the road. Brendaly Vega|Sampson Independent

Hickory Grove Baptist Church had relatively little damage from the fire that broke out in the educational wing of the sanctuary.
https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/web1_fire4.jpgHickory Grove Baptist Church had relatively little damage from the fire that broke out in the educational wing of the sanctuary. Brendaly Vega|Sampson Independent

The church is unable to repair the damages at this time. However, they were allowed to board up the windows to prevent further damage from happening.
https://www.clintonnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/web1_fire2.jpgThe church is unable to repair the damages at this time. However, they were allowed to board up the windows to prevent further damage from happening. Brendaly Vega|Sampson Independent
Numerous FDs contain blaze; cause unknown

By Brendaly Vega

[email protected]

Brendaly Vega can be reached at 910-592-8137 ext. 2588