A fire at St. Dominic Catholic Church in Breese Thursday afternoon caused minor damage.
According to Breese Fire Chief Bob Wuest, Breese Firefighters responded at 4:45 p.m., to a report of a fire at the entrance to the church. Workers were refurbishing the doors to the entrance and it is believed the cause of the fire was electrical although the exact cause is undetermined. Wuest said the fire was between the stone exterior of the building and the wooden frame structure.
Firefighters had to go through the back of the balcony portion of the church to extinguish the fire. They kept the fire from spreading to other portions of the building and from going up into the bell tower directly above the entrance. Damage was confined to the entrance of the building with other areas receiving smoke damage.
Firefighters from Carlyle, Germantown, St. Rose, Aviston, and Beckemeyer provided mutual aid. Breese ambulance personnel were on scene, Breese Police provided traffic control, and the Clinton County Emergency Management Agency set up a rehab station providing firefighters with water and other re-hydrating drinks.
Firefighters were on the scene about two hours and no injuries were reported.
