Fire destroys Serbian Orthodox church in New York City

A large fire has destroyed the Serbian Orthodox Church of St. Sava in central Manhattan, New York City, on Orthodox Easter Sunday.

There have been no victims, but the building no longer exists, priest Djokan Majstorovic said, and added:

“This church brought together the whole community, it was the only one in New York, and now it’s gone. This is terrible, a nightmare, my heart is broken.”

More than 170 firefighters worked for four hours to contain the the blaze that broke out at 19:00 hours local time. The cause of the fire remains unknown at this time.

ap-pozar-u-srpskoj-crkvi-svetog-save-u-njujorku01_14621729180 — Photo: www.newsweek.rs

Earlier in the day, more than 700 Orthodox believers celebrated Easter there. The building, dating back to 1890, was empty when the fire broke out.

The Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) bought the building, designated a New York City landmark, in 1943.

The city’s fire commissioner Daniel Nigro told the New York Post that the cause of fire remains under investigation, RT reported. “It’s a very sad day today,” Nigro said.