After a fire at the College Church of Christ on Jan. 19, church members are still trying to recover from the accident, which caused smoke damage and injury to the baptistry area.
Around 11 p.m., Harding students who were sitting at Midnight Oil called the Searcy Fire Department when they saw flames in the windows of College Church.
At approximately 11:35 p.m., the fire department arrived.
Noel Whitlock, pulpit minister at the College Church, said that the fire started in the baptistry area.
“The heater got too hot,” Whitlock said. “But the fire was contained to under the baptistry and got out of that area just a little.”
He mentioned that the ceiling tiles and the concrete walls contained the fire to the baptistry. However, the smoke from the flames filled the whole building.
Whitlock said the rumor about the baptistery putting out the fire is not true. It was the fire department workers who put out the fire.
“I was impressed with how professional the Searcy Fire Department was,” Whitlock said.
They spent three extra hours pushing the smoke out of the building to make sure everything was completed and all of the embers and ash were put out.
Jill Baber, children’s ministry intern at College Church, said that due to water damage from extinguishing the fire in the resource room, they are not able to use visuals for the children’s classes.
“We aren’t going to be able to use (our resource room) for the next three months,” Baber said.
The congregation is currently meeting in the Benson Auditorium with a combined service. Classes are able to meet in the McInteer building, the student center or in the classrooms at the College Church.
“Attendance has taken a pretty good dip,” Whitlock said. “We are not getting as many college students due to the earlier time.”
He also said some of the older members of the church are attending other churches for the time being because it is as convenient for them to go to the Benson Auditorium. Once the repairs are finished, Whitlock said he expects attendance will be back to normal.
Whitlock said there is not a set date for the completion of the church’s repairs; however, the practical date is going to be sometime after Spring Break. According to Whitlock, about 90 percent of the ceiling tiles have been cleaned or replaced.
Whitlock said every area church has called and asked how they could help during this time.
As of now, the College Church of Christ will be meeting in the Benson at 9 a.m. on Sunday. Sunday and Wednesday night services are in the family room at the church.
