BOSTON (AP) -- Fire ripped through a Baptist church in Boston's Jamaica Plain section on Tuesday night, destroying the church in the heart of the neighborhood.
The five-alarm blaze tore through the roof of the First Baptist Church as firefighters fought both the stubborn flames and arctic cold, which froze water on the ground and forced the department to bring in a bus where firefighters could warm up, said spokesman Scott Salman.
Salman said that the fire, which was first reported at about 5:30 p.m., raced to five alarms as the stucco building became engulfed in flames. There were about 20 trucks and other fire fighting equipment on scene, and more than 100 firefighters, but no reports of injuries.
''The commissioner believes it will be a total loss,'' he said.
The fire was believed to have started in the basement, although the pastor told investigators that there had been a man in the basement food pantry who smelled smoke, and discovered the fire when he went up stairs to the sanctuary, Salman said.
The cause was under investigation.
The church, which was dedicated in 1859, suffered a fire in the 1990s, but had been restored, according to the Web site of the Jamaica Plain Historical Society.
