Aboite Church destroyed by fire, injured firefigher released from hospital

ALLEN COUNTY, Ind. (WANE) -  Firefighters fought a large fire at a church fire on Aboite Road in southwest Allen County early Monday morning.

Fire officials said they received the initial call around 2:20 a.m. after a neighbor heard a popping noise from a downed electrical wire.

When the first crews arrived the Aboite Church in the 8900 block of Aboite Road was fully engulfed in flames. Crews had to protect surrounding buildings while battling the flames.

Most of the fire was out in about an hour. The church is a total loss.

Fire officials said the building was vacant.

Firefighters from Aboite Township and Southwest Fire were at the scene. Tankers from most departments in western Allen County were also called to the scene, including additional help from Roanoke and Churubusco.

An Aboite firefighter collapsed at the scene and was unconscious when medics transported him to Lutheran Hospital.

He has since been released from the hospital and NewsChannel 15 has been told he is doing much better but it is still unknown why collapsed.

Southwest Fire Chief Don Patnoude said he was unsure of what happened to the firefighter, telling NewsChannel 15 it was either from heat exhaustion or perhaps some sort of medical condition.

Patnoude also said the cause was under investigation but they were looking into calls the Sheriff's Department had taken about juveniles possibly being in the area. Patnoude said it was too early to speculate what happened or if fire was intentionally set.

Church before the fire

Church after the fire