THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, June 18, 1994 TAG: 9406180240
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY ANNE SAITA, CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: 940618 LENGTH: POPLAR BRANCH
The cause of the blaze, believed to have started around 4 a.m., is under investigation, a Currituck County fire official said.
{REST} Twenty-nine firefighters from Lower Currituck, Crawford and Corolla fire stations took two hours to extinguish the fire and prevent it from consuming an adjacent church wing.
Firefighters received a call just after 5 a.m.
``It was fully involved by the time we arrived. You could see it burning for miles down the road,'' said Jerry Winfree, a paramedic and volunteer firefighter with the Lower Currituck Fire Department.
The white-shingled, wooden structure, located on Poplar Branch Road about a half-mile east of U.S. 158 highway, was built from 1886 to 1889 and drew about 150 church-goers weekly. Church membership is 278.
The Rev. James Clark, the church's pastor, said the congregation had planned to expand the sanctuary another 30 feet to accommodate more people.
``Maybe our plans weren't visionary enough,'' the minister said. ``Maybe the good Lord had other plans for us.''
Clark said he arrived shortly after firefighters and watched as they battled to keep flames from destroying an adjacent fellowship hall, built in 1978.
That wing was spared but sustained substantial heat and smoke damage. Until the hall is repaired, the church will meet for weekly worship services at W.T. Griggs Elementary School in Poplar Branch.
This Sunday's 11 a.m. worship service at the Griggs school will not include Sunday Bible School.
``I've got a key in my pocket, so we're in business,'' Clark said.
There were no estimates Friday afternoon on the extent of damage, but Clark said it would cost about $400,000 to rebuild the facility. The church was insured.
Like many rural churches, Poplar Branch Baptist also was used as a meeting place for community groups and youth organizations.
The parish was formed 108 years ago and its building erected from pine timber harvested on church property, Clark said. Before that, services were held at a nearby school.
The minister said he watched Friday morning as the church steeple fell to the ground, with the cross remaining upright in the middle of the blazing building.
``That was sort of a commemorative occasion when the cross fell and still stood up,'' he said.
A new church is expected to be rebuilt at the same Currituck County site.
{KEYWORDS} FIRE
by CNB