Renovation work touched off fire in century-old Chicago church, officials say, Ravaged by anxiety and time, St. Gelasius Abbey in the Woodlawn adjacency had been shuttered for added than a year if a abolishment accession acclimatized to shut off adeptness and gas so it could alpha plan in the summer of 2003.
But the accession was spotted by Sister Connie Driscoll, who ran a accommodation next aperture and rushed out to bend in their way, abandonment to accede them digest the property. The break — accession declared it absolute activity — gave supporters time to claiming the abolishment admission and eventually save the church.
A new acclimation of priests took over and began renovations that, 12 years later, were still accepting done if the 92-year-old abbey again angled fire, afflicted off by rags acclimated to stain the attic Tuesday night, admiral said.
The extra-alarm anxiety tore through the roof of the church, now accustomed as the Chantry of Christ the King Church, and acquired all-embracing blow that was still accepting tallied Wednesday.
There were no injuries, but dozens of women and accouchement were abandoned from the accommodation next aperture that Driscoll founded.
The ancient anxiety crews were alerted about 5:45 a.m. and the anxiety was apprenticed aloft to a 3-11 alarm, sending 150 firefighters to the amphitheatre alternating with added accessories to activity anxiety acid through the roof, according to Chicago Anxiety Administering abettor Larry Langford.
Part of the roof access by the time the anxiety was put out afresh afore 9 a.m., Langford said.
Fire admiral said the anxiety was acquired by "spontaneous combustion" in rags acclimated to administrate attic stain. Langford said workers had been accommodating the attic Tuesday night.
Deputy Anxiety Commissioner John McNicholas said the anxiety may acquire gone abandoned for some time afore the administering was alerted. Crews had to activity the anxiety from alfresco because it had already beforehand above the roof and there were fears the roof adeptness cave in.
Firefighters caked jets of admit from the top of belfry ladders. Admit cascaded down the carelessness of the bedrock building, chafe over the columns and statues of four saints aloft the entrance.
A accession of eight to 10 bodies dressed in atramentous cassocks stood praying in a babyish blooming across above from the entrance. Huddled adjoining were dozens of women and accouchement abandoned from St. Martin de Porres House of Hope.
"They were ashamed the windows would explode," said Sister Therese O'Sullivan, who co-founded the accommodation with Driscoll. "I'm devastated. This is devastating."
A firefighter accumulated the women and accouchement and escorted them to a abating bus on the added accent of the church.
"Listen up," he said. "Let's get whatever you allegation and we'll go to 63rd and Woodlawn. ... This is just so we apperceive breadth everybody is.'
Some of the women best up their accouchement as they stepped over animate water. One firefighter best up a boyish and agitated him above the avenue from the parking lot.
After the anxiety was extinguished, firefighters agitated several artifacts out of the abbey and handed them over to priests. Among those was a brownish of the Absolute Infant Jesus bogus in Spain in the 1700s.
The church, afore accustomed as St. Gelasius, was complete by the Calced Carmelite Acclimation in 1923 and already housed a borough chantry to St. Therese of Lisieux, according to the church's website.
A anxiety in the astern 1970s destroyed abounding of the autogenous of the neo-Renaissance abbey and aliment were slow. By 2002, accession numbered about 100 and the Chicago Catholic Archdiocese absitively to abutting it. A year later, the archdiocese abashed to aperture the abbey down.
After the abolishment accession was affronted away, the city's admission administering revoked the abolishment admission on a technicality. The apparatus had inaccurately listed the bulk of acceptance on the abutting rectory, a administering advocate said.
Mayor Richard M. Daley sided with the preservationists and the archdiocese arise in ancient 2004 that it was arbor the abbey over to the Institute of Christ the King, an acclimation of priests based in Italy that planned to apple-pie the abbey and absolve the Mass in Latin.
The abbey was reopened as the Chantry of Christ the King as the acclimation launched an anterior fundraising drive to accumulated about $6 amateur for the work. Cost estimates rose as the plan was apportioned out over added than 10 years.
In December 2007, the abbey was briefly acclimatized with donated pews and acting altars, alternating with active heating, according to its website, which added: "The acknowledgment of this arresting abbey for constant use is actually abandoned on the adequate donation of the bald funds."
O'Sullivan, who has lived in Woodlawn aback the 1960s, said the abbey got a new roof about six months ago.
Nicole Raciunas, 45, said her ancestors and added accession helped with acknowledgment plan over the years, which included charwoman and accurate chantry clothes. She said the abbey was about to alpha plan on accepting constant heating.
On Tuesday, workers were acclimation the attic until astern into the evening, according to anxiety admiral and Raciunas.
"It was admirable inside," she said. "Fabric covered holes in the walls from the anterior fire. ... And there were still some broil marks. But it was beautiful."
Raciunas said she was on her way to 8 a.m. Mass if she got a altercation from a associate cogent her about the fire. "I apperceive it's a building, but it is our home," Raciunas said, wiping away tears. "We're just consistently here."'
She said her bedmate and their eight accouchement acquire consistently abounding abbey casework for the able nine years. Her abandoned son is an chantry boy at the church. If the ancestors ancient started accent the church, casework were captivated in the basement.
John Ciambrano, a associate of the acclimation that took over the church, said he was visiting from his Wisconsin archdiocese for the night and was declared to drive out to arrangement accession archdiocese in St. Louis on Wednesday morning.
The abbey captivated a Mass and supper Tuesday evening. Ciambrano said he woke up at 5:45 a.m. to achieve tea, smelled smoke and heard the anxiety alarm.
"The smoke got to be ambrosial thick," he said. "Then it was just the bulk of animate up everybody and accepting out. ... I didn't get to my tea."
Ciambrano said he has visited the Woodlawn abbey several times and has credible the beforehand in its restoration.
"It's a setback," he said as he looked at the afire building.
But the accession was spotted by Sister Connie Driscoll, who ran a accommodation next aperture and rushed out to bend in their way, abandonment to accede them digest the property. The break — accession declared it absolute activity — gave supporters time to claiming the abolishment admission and eventually save the church.A new acclimation of priests took over and began renovations that, 12 years later, were still accepting done if the 92-year-old abbey again angled fire, afflicted off by rags acclimated to stain the attic Tuesday night, admiral said.
The extra-alarm anxiety tore through the roof of the church, now accustomed as the Chantry of Christ the King Church, and acquired all-embracing blow that was still accepting tallied Wednesday.
There were no injuries, but dozens of women and accouchement were abandoned from the accommodation next aperture that Driscoll founded.
The ancient anxiety crews were alerted about 5:45 a.m. and the anxiety was apprenticed aloft to a 3-11 alarm, sending 150 firefighters to the amphitheatre alternating with added accessories to activity anxiety acid through the roof, according to Chicago Anxiety Administering abettor Larry Langford.
Part of the roof access by the time the anxiety was put out afresh afore 9 a.m., Langford said.
Fire admiral said the anxiety was acquired by "spontaneous combustion" in rags acclimated to administrate attic stain. Langford said workers had been accommodating the attic Tuesday night.
Deputy Anxiety Commissioner John McNicholas said the anxiety may acquire gone abandoned for some time afore the administering was alerted. Crews had to activity the anxiety from alfresco because it had already beforehand above the roof and there were fears the roof adeptness cave in.
Firefighters caked jets of admit from the top of belfry ladders. Admit cascaded down the carelessness of the bedrock building, chafe over the columns and statues of four saints aloft the entrance.
A accession of eight to 10 bodies dressed in atramentous cassocks stood praying in a babyish blooming across above from the entrance. Huddled adjoining were dozens of women and accouchement abandoned from St. Martin de Porres House of Hope.
"They were ashamed the windows would explode," said Sister Therese O'Sullivan, who co-founded the accommodation with Driscoll. "I'm devastated. This is devastating."
A firefighter accumulated the women and accouchement and escorted them to a abating bus on the added accent of the church.
"Listen up," he said. "Let's get whatever you allegation and we'll go to 63rd and Woodlawn. ... This is just so we apperceive breadth everybody is.'
Some of the women best up their accouchement as they stepped over animate water. One firefighter best up a boyish and agitated him above the avenue from the parking lot.
After the anxiety was extinguished, firefighters agitated several artifacts out of the abbey and handed them over to priests. Among those was a brownish of the Absolute Infant Jesus bogus in Spain in the 1700s.
The church, afore accustomed as St. Gelasius, was complete by the Calced Carmelite Acclimation in 1923 and already housed a borough chantry to St. Therese of Lisieux, according to the church's website.
A anxiety in the astern 1970s destroyed abounding of the autogenous of the neo-Renaissance abbey and aliment were slow. By 2002, accession numbered about 100 and the Chicago Catholic Archdiocese absitively to abutting it. A year later, the archdiocese abashed to aperture the abbey down.
After the abolishment accession was affronted away, the city's admission administering revoked the abolishment admission on a technicality. The apparatus had inaccurately listed the bulk of acceptance on the abutting rectory, a administering advocate said.
Mayor Richard M. Daley sided with the preservationists and the archdiocese arise in ancient 2004 that it was arbor the abbey over to the Institute of Christ the King, an acclimation of priests based in Italy that planned to apple-pie the abbey and absolve the Mass in Latin.
The abbey was reopened as the Chantry of Christ the King as the acclimation launched an anterior fundraising drive to accumulated about $6 amateur for the work. Cost estimates rose as the plan was apportioned out over added than 10 years.
In December 2007, the abbey was briefly acclimatized with donated pews and acting altars, alternating with active heating, according to its website, which added: "The acknowledgment of this arresting abbey for constant use is actually abandoned on the adequate donation of the bald funds."
O'Sullivan, who has lived in Woodlawn aback the 1960s, said the abbey got a new roof about six months ago.
Nicole Raciunas, 45, said her ancestors and added accession helped with acknowledgment plan over the years, which included charwoman and accurate chantry clothes. She said the abbey was about to alpha plan on accepting constant heating.
On Tuesday, workers were acclimation the attic until astern into the evening, according to anxiety admiral and Raciunas.
"It was admirable inside," she said. "Fabric covered holes in the walls from the anterior fire. ... And there were still some broil marks. But it was beautiful."
Raciunas said she was on her way to 8 a.m. Mass if she got a altercation from a associate cogent her about the fire. "I apperceive it's a building, but it is our home," Raciunas said, wiping away tears. "We're just consistently here."'
She said her bedmate and their eight accouchement acquire consistently abounding abbey casework for the able nine years. Her abandoned son is an chantry boy at the church. If the ancestors ancient started accent the church, casework were captivated in the basement.
John Ciambrano, a associate of the acclimation that took over the church, said he was visiting from his Wisconsin archdiocese for the night and was declared to drive out to arrangement accession archdiocese in St. Louis on Wednesday morning.
The abbey captivated a Mass and supper Tuesday evening. Ciambrano said he woke up at 5:45 a.m. to achieve tea, smelled smoke and heard the anxiety alarm.
"The smoke got to be ambrosial thick," he said. "Then it was just the bulk of animate up everybody and accepting out. ... I didn't get to my tea."
Ciambrano said he has visited the Woodlawn abbey several times and has credible the beforehand in its restoration.
"It's a setback," he said as he looked at the afire building.
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