Fire Tears Through Historic Van Nuys Church
VAN NUYS (CBSLA) – Investigators are trying to determine what caused a greater-alarm blaze that ripped through a church in Van Nuys Monday night.
The fire was reported at The Church On The Way in the 14300 block of Sherman Way at 6:06 p.m. Los Angeles Fire Department crews arrived to find heavy flames coming from the two-story building.
It took about 48 minutes for more than 100 firefighters to knock it down, the fire department said. Crews remained on scene for several hours to monitor flames that were smoldering in the second-floor walls of the building. The church was unoccupied at the time of the fire and there were no injuries.
Sherman Way was shut down in both directions during the firefight.
The extent of the damage to the church was not confirmed. The Los Angeles House of Worship Task Force, made up of several agencies -- including the ATF and FBI – is investigating, along with an LAFD arson unit.
According to its website, The Church On The Way was founded in 1926.