A former church in Toledo, Ohio, was demolished following a fire that is still under investigation.

A fire at the former St Agnes church building was reported at around 6:30am on Saturday, September 5, said local newspaper the Toledo Blade. Firefighters battled and extinguished the flames, but the roof of the church was completely burned away and the building’s steeple collapsed.

Work demolishing the building began Saturday afternoon and continued into Sunday morning.

Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz lamented the loss of “truly one of the most beautiful churches in Toledo”, but said he was heartened that nobody was hurt in the fire.

“While I am glad there don’t appear to be any injuries or property damage to adjacent homes, the loss of that church leaves a hole in the heart of that neighbourhood,” said Kapszukiewicz.

A man who lives next door to the church said the fire quickly became very intense.

“You couldn't just see it when you walked out of the house. You could feel it. That's how hot it was,” Terry Bretz told local news outlet WTOL 11. “That whole church was already going all the way up. It was bad.”

The church was vacant at the time of the fire and no injuries were reported, said the Toledo Blade.

St Agnes opened in 1910 and was closed by the Diocese of Toledo in 2005 as part of a diocesan restructuring. The Diocese of Toledo no longer owns the property, reported the Toledo Blade.

The parochial school associated with the parish closed at that time as well, but a charter school moved into the school building in 2023. The school building was largely unharmed by the fire, but classes were cancelled on Tuesday.

Authorities are still investigating the cause of Saturday’s fire.

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