A bizarre fire, which burst out in one of the churches of Ocean City, Maryland, Washington area, USA. The tragedy left 2 people dead, including the church’s longtime pastor, and a woman critically injured.
The fire started on Tuesday when a man — his clothes and body on fire — entered St. Paul’s by the Sea church in a section where services are provided to the area’s needy.
According to a witness, somebody tried to pull the man out and then the building caught fire from there.
Fire and police officials said, the blaze, possibly helped by the use of an accelerant, spread quickly.
A 56-year-old man, who caused the fire, was identified as John Raymond Sterner. Sterner was found dead inside the building by firefighters.
The church pastor, the Rev. David Dingwall, was found unconscious on the second floor of the church amid “heavy smoke and heat conditions,” authorities said. Unfortunately, he later died at a hospital.
One woman was critically injured, police said.
It’s not yet clear how Sterner came to be on fire.
The Rev. Canon Heather Cook of the Episcopal Diocese of Easton told The Baltimore Sun that a church parishioner and volunteer at the food bank that operates out of the church rectory were preparing to open when the man came in, screaming for help. “I’m heartbroken. I’m sick,” church organist Shirley Hailey told WJLA.
The church members are mourning this week over the terrible tragedy.
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