Fire at First Baptist Dallas causes historic secondary chapel to ‘largely’ collapse

Dallas Fire-Rescue on Friday battled a fire at First Baptist Dallas church that caused the historic church’s secondary chapel — which served as a place of worship for over a century until the church opened a new facility in 2013 — to “largely” collapse, an official said.

“We are grateful that no life has been lost that we know of even though we just had 2,000 children and volunteers on campus for Vacation Bible School,” said Robert Jeffress, the church’s senior pastor, in a statement late Friday. “As tragic as the loss of this old sanctuary is, we are grateful that the church is not bricks and wood but composed of over 16,000 people who are determined more than ever before to reach the world for the gospel of Christ. Please pray for all of First Baptist Dallas.”

At 6:05 p.m., crews were called to the sanctuary at 1717 San Jacinto Street and confronted with “heavy smoke” from the building fire, Capt. Robert Borse said. A thick sheen of smoke enveloped dozens of firefighters and emergency personnel working outside the church as fire alarms blared and flashed from inside the building.

At 9:46 p.m., more than three hours after the initial call, the crews had contained the fire. No injuries have been reported, Borse said, adding he had no reports of evacuations in the area or damage to surrounding structures

Arson investigators with Dallas Fire-Rescue will begin an investigation into the cause once firefighting operations are complete and they can access the scene, he said.

Standing outside as the fire burned, Ben Lovvorn, executive pastor of First Baptist Dallas, told The Dallas Morning News that he believes it started shortly after 6 p.m. but said he did not yet know the cause. He said he was one of the last people in the building.

“We know that God is in control, and we know, even in difficult times, he’s sovereign over all things,” he said. “If at all possible, we’re planning on having church on Sunday.”

Dallas Fire-Rescue first classified the fire as a two-alarm fire and, at 7:25 p.m., nearly an hour and a half into the response, updated it to a third alarm. The fire was upgraded to a fourth alarm at 8:14 p.m., meaning additional engines were dispatched. Part of the rationale for upgrading the alarm level was to protect surrounding structures from possible exposures, Borse said.

The chapel partially collapsed just after 7:30 p.m. Within the next hour, more than 60 units were responding to the fire, according to a list of active calls on Dallas Fire-Rescue’s website.

At one point, a firefighter stood atop a fully extended ladder, hovering over the church’s cascading fountain, as smoke blanketed the air. A police officer blocking Wenchell Lane warned residents not to breathe in the fumes.

Collin Buford watched in sadness and shock as his family’s longtime church was engulfed in flames. The 34-year-old Dallas resident, who rushed to the church after seeing the towering smoke from his apartment, was baptized at First Baptist Dallas as a child and noted that both of his parents were formerly on staff.

“I was in chapel choir and orchestra there and went on many summer tours, performed in the historic sanctuary many times,” Buford said. “It has been a place I’ve shared many emotions. Funerals, weddings, church services and more.”

Tanis Devlin sent her two sons to First Baptist Sunday school more than 20 years ago. She waited nearly two hours to peer out from her nearby apartment to watch the charcoal billows with her own eyes.

”It’s so sad,” she said watching the hoses rain on the scorched structure. “I’m now realizing how bad it was,” said Devlin, 70, holding a dirty blonde Yorkie named Monkey in her arms.

There was an unusual amount of foot traffic downtown as crowds gathered behind crime scene tape on nearby street corners, their faces illuminated by a panoply of red, green and blue lights flashing from ambulances and fire trucks. Waves of heat could be felt from several blocks away as crews battled the worst of the hastening flames.

The DART rail rang continuously along Bryan Street, an incongruous tone as fire alarms continued to sound in the distance.

First Baptist Dallas started in 1868 with just three men and eight women, according to a story by The News on its 150th anniversary.

The church now has about 16,000 members and says its mission is to transform the world with God’s word one life at a time through its ministries, including its international broadcast of Pathway to Victory and its iCampus, which reaches millions of listeners and viewers worldwide.

Jeffress has become a well-known national figure. He’s a regular contributor to Fox News who has drawn criticism for some of his politically charged remarks, focused on three aspects of sustaining First Baptist’s success: commitment to the church, spreading the Gospel and grounding itself in the Bible.

He became one of former President Donald Trump’s most prominent Christian advisers and was a frequent visitor to the White House during his presidency. Trump visited the church in December 2021. Jeffress referred to Trump several times during the visit as one of his closest friends, The News reported. Other well-known pastors to lead First Baptist Dallas include George W. Truett and W.A. Criswell.

Staff writers Miriam Fauzia, Arcelia Martin and Leah Waters contributed to this report.