Around 100 firefighters are currently battling the blaze and are expected to remain at the scene throughout the night, Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Adam Thiel confirmed to multiple outlets Tuesday.
— Philadelphia Fire (@PhillyFireDept) August 27, 2019
“This is an active firefight,” Thiel is reported as saying. “We will be here the entire night dealing with this active firefight.”
— Philadelphia Fire (@PhillyFireDept) August 27, 2019
“We’re worried about collapses [because] there are parts of the building that have already collapsed into it - we have parts of the building collapsed out onto the street, so we’re sort of in a standoff mode,” Thiel added.
— Sotiri Dimpinoudis (@sotiridi) August 27, 2019
— John Rawlins (@JRawlins6abc) August 27, 2019
Fire officials are urging residents to avoid the area until the fire is put out. Several buildings adjacent to the church may also need to be evacuated.
— Amy Mek (@AmyMek) August 27, 2019
There are no reported deaths as a result of the incident. One unidentified person was transported to the hospital, CBS Philly reported.
Fire marshals are currently investigating the cause of the blaze, which erupted just before 3 p.m. local time. According to local news outlet WPVI, several workers were on the roof when the fire was first reported.
— Greg Argos (@GregArgosCBS3) August 27, 2019
The Philadelphia branch of the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is presently on scene.
