Bricks that were laid 150 years ago came down on Christmas Eve down after a devastating fire destroyed the historic church-turned-event venue.
Indianapolis firefighters found heavy fire in the basement of the church from end to end with fire and smoke pushing throughout. Command ordered a defensive fire operation only and sounded a second alarm.
Crews battled the blaze for well over an hour before marking it under control, fire officials posted on the department's Facebook page.
High tension power lines in the area required a temporary grid shut down by AES for about 170 customers as crews positioned aerials around them. Power was restored within 30 minutes.
Several boosts in water pressure from Citizens Energy as the multiple use of master streams and hand lines created quite a significant draw on the system.
In recent years, The Sanctuary on Penn was where something old met something new – built in 1875, the gothic revival landmark has been the backdrop to countless special memories.
“It’s a beautiful building and that’s why we chose it,” said upcoming groom Michael Singer. “It’s very pretty inside, we fell in love with it.”
