FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — A church near the Cumming Fairgrounds in Forsyth County burned early in the morning on Thursday, around 3 a.m.
Forsyth County Fire Chief Jason Shivers confirmed to Channel 2 Action News that the sanctuary was heavily damaged in the fire.
Shivers said the roof and steeple collapsed but it is not known yet if the church is a total loss.
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The fire chief told Channel 2’s Tyisha Fernandes that nearly everyone in the community has some type of connection to the church, which has had many different names.
Right now, the congregation calls the church on Tolbert Street the Dogwood Church of Forsyth.
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News Drone 2 and NewsChopper2 flew over the damaged sanctuary showing the roof is gone in the area, the steeple is gone and even offices in the back of the church were heavily damaged in the fire.
Shivers said the fire was burning for several hours before a member of the Cumming Police Department on patrol noticed the flames and called the fire department.
Fire crews got to the church quickly overnight, while most people in the neighborhood were sleeping.
Church pastor Maggie Black told Fernandes that services were ongoing at the church and the congregation was excited.
“I just wanna say to all the people that were going there were very good people and we were having very good services and we were very excited,” Black said. “I had a great vision for the church and I was just excited to see what God was gonna do there in Cumming, Ga.”
Members of the community said the church was going through a revival when the fire interrupted their plans.
Now, the congregation isn’t sure if they’re going to rebuild, but they do plan to meet in the parking lot on Sunday.
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