Child may have accidentally caused fire at historic Tacoma church
A fire at Tacoma’s historic Saint Patrick Catholic Church may have been accidentally started by a child, according to the Fire Department.
No one was injured in Sunday’s blaze, which took place shortly after Mass and caused at least $5,500 in damages.
The fire was contained to a nursery room in the basement.
Firefighters were called to the church at 1001 N. J St. shortly before noon and found heavy flames in the basement. They were able to quickly extinguish the fire.
The nursery will be gutted and redone, according to the church. The work is expected to take up to a month.
Repairs will also be necessary in the basement hallway and bathrooms, which suffered smoke and soot damage.
Saint Patrick Catholic Church has been at its location since 1907. Its previous building was destroyed in a fire in 1905.
Stacia Glenn: 253-597-8653
This story was originally published January 19, 2018 at 12:46 PM with the headline "Child may have accidentally caused fire at historic Tacoma church."