SkyEye flew above the church as Houston firefighters were seen breaking down boarded-up entrances on the second floor of the building, located downtown in the 1900 block of San Jacinto.
Smoke could be seen rising above the building around 7:15 a.m.
The fire was contained to the second floor, firefighters said. Officials were able to quickly extinguish the flames.
@HoustonFire is on scene at 1900 San Jacinto performing an offensive attack after receiving reports of a church on fire. Call type has been upgraded to a 2-11. No FF or civilian injuries have been reported. Please avoid the area due to heavy emergency traffic. @FireChiefofHFD
— Houston Fire Dept (@HoustonFire) January 31, 2022
The old building is actually closed to the public and decommissioned.
The church moved out of the facility into a newer building next door in 2008.
Despite the building being closed, officials said mattresses were found inside that may have been used by homeless individuals.
The Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston said they did not expect anything of value was lost in the fire. They said no one was supposed to be inside, and the power to the building had actually been turned off.
"I did receive information and that there was, although this is an abandoned building, there were signs that someone was squatting there, such as mattresses and other living materials in this building. But no one was injured," Martee Boose with HFD said.
Update: The church fire at 1900 San Jacinto was tapped out at approximately 7:30 am. No civilian injuries reported. Arson has been dispatched to conduct an investigation. @HoustonFire crews are on scene performing overhaul. @FireChiefofHFD pic.twitter.com/r2owYw3K21
— Houston Fire Dept (@HoustonFire) January 31, 2022
ABC13 crews at the scene saw graffiti inside the decommissioned building.
Arson investigators were questioning witnesses, trying to figure out what exactly caused the fire.
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