An alleged arson attack destroyed the historic St. Colman Catholic Church in Raleigh County, West Virginia, on Sunday, according to the local volunteer fire department.
The church is known as “The Little Catholic Church on Irish Mountain,” and it is on the National Register of Historic Places.
“On 6/26/2022 units from Beaver VFD were alerted to a structure fire at the Saint Colman Catholic Church on Irish Mountain Road in Shady Spring, WV,” the Beaver Volunteer Fire Department said in an online post.
The church had already burned to the ground and was “smoldering” when the department arrived on the scene, according to the post. The post claims that the fire is “suspicious in nature.” According to the post, arson is being looked into in relation to the incident.
The Wheeling-Charleston Diocese is home to St. Colman’s. On Monday morning, CNA tried to get in touch with the diocese for more details, but nobody was immediately accessible.
According to the post, “We were assisted by Ghent VFD, Coal City VFD, Ghent EMS, National Park Service, and the WV State Police.”
The department is requesting that anyone with relevant information get in touch with Trooper D. Daniels of the West Virginia State Police at (304) 256-6700. Crime Stoppers of Raleigh County at 304-255-STOP, the West Virginia State Fire Marshal’s Arson Hotline at 1 (800) 233-3473, and www.crimestopperswv.com are additional ways to get in touch.
This story is still developing.