BREAKING NEWS: Major fire severely damages Porvoo Cathedral

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The top half of Porvoo Cathedral, originating from medieval times, was totally destroyed by fire in the early hours of Monday morning. After the blaze, all that remained upright of the structure that for centuries has dominated the Porvoo cityscape was its blackened gable walls.
      Rescue officials estimated this morning that the church's 30-centimetre thick vaulting that served as its ceiling has remained intact.
      At least according to preliminary estimates the church's interior also survived the flames largely unharmed. The interior sustained some smoke damage, but very little water penetrated through the vaulting. The fact that the fire department managed to rescue some of the valuables also reduced the damage.
     
The Eastern Uusimaa Rescue Department was alerted of the fire by a taxi driver at 2:09 am. By the time the fire trucks reached the scene the roof of the church was already ablaze along its entire length. "Nothing could be done to save the roof structures", said fire chief Jorma Kuikka.
      While the fire department concentrated on protecting the adjacent bell tower and the nearby wooden buildings, some local residents resorted to safeguarding their homes by using buckets to throw water on the tarred roofs.
     
Twenty-one fire units and around 80 firemen took part in extinguishing the flames. Apart from the fallen chandeliers, the interior of the church seemed to have escaped the fire in remarkably good condition.
      The high roof of the church and all the wooden structures above the vaulted ceiling, on the other hand, were totally destroyed.
      At the moment the gable walls that now stand idle are in danger of collapsing if the wind picks up. The city engineers have already launched the planning of support structures.
     
According to the police, the fire stared from outside the church.
      In a morning press conference, chief inspector Kaj Wall refrained from responding to queries whether there was suspicion of arson.
      The church surroundings do not have any video surveillance cameras.
      The fire will severely complicate the activities of the Parish Union of Porvoo. For one, the cathedral had been booked in advance for some 200 wedding ceremonies.
      We shall naturally return in greater detail to this story tomorrow morning.


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