ZEBULON, Ga. — A pastor of a historic church in Pike County left the building on Wednesday afternoon only to get a devastating phone call that the church was engulfed in flames.
Zebulon United Methodist Church Pastor Arianna Eberle said it was a normal day when she did some sermon prep work and left the building to go and tutor a kindergarten student.
She got the news when she was in the middle of tutoring.
"I got a phone call that said, pastor, our building caught fire," Eberle stated.
The pastor said that's when phone calls kept coming in, saying they saw lightning strike the over 200-year-old church and that they heard a loud bang.
Zebulon's Mayor, Joe Walter, said that crews from multiple fire departments had been attempting to extinguish the fire since around 4 p.m.
"It appears to be a total loss," Walter stated about the church.
According to an update from the Pike County Fire Department, flames were seen by an off-duty firefighter who called 911.
"The main sanctuary is a total loss with significant water and smoke damage to the rest of the structure," the fire department said.
Fire officials said no one was in church when the fire started, and there were no injuries. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. The fire department said the State Fire Marshal has not ruled out the possibility of a lightning strike.
Pastor Eberle said the sight of the building coming down as a fiery blaze engulfed the church was gut-wrenching.
"It ripped my heart out. I laid on the ground out here and cried," Eberle said. "I couldn't believe it."
However, despite the heartbreaking news of the building being destroyed, the community is uniting during this time. Mayor Walter said that they would be worshiping together at the site on Sunday. The church posted to social media stating they will be worshiping in the parking lot at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday with their lawn chairs.
"We're gonna worship together as a family," Walter said. "We've done this before. We may not remember it, but we're going to rebuild whatever it takes."