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Historic Ionia Co. church damaged in fire

While the south side of the building sustained significant damage, authorities say the sanctuary only sustained minimal damage.

IONIA, Mich. — The Zion United Methodist Church was damaged after it caught fire Thursday evening.

The church is located at 423 West Washington Street in Ionia County.

When crews with the Ionia Department of Public Safety arrived on scene, the southeast side of the building had flames coming out of the second story window.

Crews were able to knock down the fire and extinguish the flames with help from neighboring agencies.

While the south side of the building sustained significant damage, authorities say the sanctuary only sustained minimal damage.

About 20 people were inside the church for the weekly community dinner when it caught fire. No injuries were reported.

"We quickly ran to get a fire extinguisher, tried to put it out but the fire had gone too far," said Roger VanVleck, who was inside the church at the time.

"Hopefully we'll get things taken care of and rebuild or refurbish, whatever needs to be done," he said. "I've gone to this church for a number of years, I met my wife here as teenagers, my mom and dad got married here...It means a lot to me."

The cause of the fire has not been released. The pastor of the church says there may be water damage in the basement, and that there have been several offers on places to hold church services this Sunday.

Credit: 13 OYS

The church has known many names and served many worshippers since it was built in 1886, and this isn't the first time a fire has impacted the church.

The church, originally known as Zion Church of Evangelical Association, was originally started in a home, which was destroyed in a fire. 

In 1867, the first church was built, but the congregation eventually outgrew the church. The current building was built in 1886.

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