Historic Brooklyn Church Fire Destroys Steeple In Three-Alarm Blaze

BROOKLYN, NY— Fire tore through the historic South Bushwick Church on Bushwick Avenue after 1:20 p.m. on Friday, collapsing its steeple and sending smoke across the neighborhood.

FDNY said the blaze escalated into a three-alarm fire as flames spread through the wooden structure built in 1853, originally known as the South Bushwick Reformed Protestant Dutch Church.

The Department of Buildings said inspectors found the steeple fully collapsed and significant fire damage throughout the structure.

Officials issued a full vacate order and scheduled additional inspections.

Fire crews continued dousing the structure for hours as sections of the roof and steeple collapsed.

“This is a tremendous loss, a loss to the area, a loss of the history of Bushwick,” Rev. James Steward, pastor of the church, said.

New York Attorney General Letitia James visited the site and said the building would be restored through landmark protections and grant funding.