The
Dallas Morning News
noted
that initially “40 Dallas Fire and Rescue Units responded” to the fire around 6:40 p.m., but by 8:00 p.m., there were roughly “60 units” that had arrived to respond to the fire.
Around 6:05 p.m., the fire at the church, which began in the secondary chapel, was called in, Dallas Fire Chief Robert Borse said in a statement, according to the outlet.
In a
statement
on X around 8:54 p.m., Jeffress asked people to pray for his church and revealed there had been a “fire in the Historic Sanctuary.”
In a statement around 9:46 p.m., Borse reportedly confirmed that the fire was “knocked down and contained,” and added that the structure had “largely collapsed,”
according to
the Daily Signal.
“PLEASE PRAY FOR OUR CHURCH,” Jeffress wrote. “We have experienced a fire in the Historic Sanctuary. To our knowledge, no one is hurt or injured, and we thank God for His protection. He is sovereign even in the most difficult times.”
In a statement, Jeffress confirmed that the church had had “2,000 children and volunteers” take part in a VBS event, according to the
Dallas Morning News.
Jeffress previously
endorsed
former President Donald Trump as he was running for president in 2016.
“We continue to praise God for His hand of protection on our church. We are grateful that no one was injured today and are thankful for the first responders who helped contain the fire to our Historic Sanctuary,” Jeffress wrote in another
post
on X. “They continue working but the primary fire has been extinguished. One way or another, we intend to meet for church this Sunday. More details to follow. We hope to see you there.”
The church
website
describes the “cornerstone of First Baptist Dallas” as having been “laid in 1890 by a small group of believers determined to begin a Baptist church in downtown Dallas.”