Lightning Strikes Spark Fires in Arkadelphia
By: Brittney Johnson, KARK 4 News
Updated: February 22, 2013
Fire crews are blaming lightning strikes for multiple fires that popped up in Arkadelphia Thursday.
Crews say they put out fires sparked by lightning that all started at the same time.
Pastor Kendal Land says he was inside First Presbyterian Church of Arkadelphia as storms battered the state when suddenly the fire chief came to the door.
"The fire chief came in and said the church is on fire," he says.
A passerby snapped a photo as flames consumed the steeple of the century old church.
"Fire was coming up from around the cross," says Chief Ricky Arnold.
It was one of three fire calls Chief Arnold dispatched crews to within minutes of each other. He says another burned a washing machine.
"We always say our fires come in threes but we don't like them to come at the same time," he says.
Weather radar images show clusters of cloud to ground lightning strikes shooting down I-30 right across Clark county between 10 and 11 am, making for a busy day for Jesse Haaks team from Chenal Restoration. He says they responded to calls in Hot Springs and Arkadelphia.
"You can tell by the explosion there is debris everywhere," Haak says, describing damage caused by lightening.
Haak says it's common for steeples to catch fire because they're the highest part of the church.
'We have to scramble to get the right people to get the repair started so they will be back in service Sunday morning," Haak says of the church.
Pastor Land is grateful fire crews rushed to protect their organ, placed right under the steeple in the 50's.
''We use it every time we worship, it's a a central part of who we are," says Pastor Land.
The outside of the church may be damaged now, but Pastor Land says it's what happens inside that matters most.
Crews say they put out fires sparked by lightning that all started at the same time.
Pastor Kendal Land says he was inside First Presbyterian Church of Arkadelphia as storms battered the state when suddenly the fire chief came to the door.
"The fire chief came in and said the church is on fire," he says.
A passerby snapped a photo as flames consumed the steeple of the century old church.
"Fire was coming up from around the cross," says Chief Ricky Arnold.
It was one of three fire calls Chief Arnold dispatched crews to within minutes of each other. He says another burned a washing machine.
"We always say our fires come in threes but we don't like them to come at the same time," he says.
Weather radar images show clusters of cloud to ground lightning strikes shooting down I-30 right across Clark county between 10 and 11 am, making for a busy day for Jesse Haaks team from Chenal Restoration. He says they responded to calls in Hot Springs and Arkadelphia.
"You can tell by the explosion there is debris everywhere," Haak says, describing damage caused by lightening.
Haak says it's common for steeples to catch fire because they're the highest part of the church.
'We have to scramble to get the right people to get the repair started so they will be back in service Sunday morning," Haak says of the church.
Pastor Land is grateful fire crews rushed to protect their organ, placed right under the steeple in the 50's.
''We use it every time we worship, it's a a central part of who we are," says Pastor Land.
The outside of the church may be damaged now, but Pastor Land says it's what happens inside that matters most.
