Investigators have not ruled out arson in the massive fire that destroyed a landmarked Brooklyn church last month, and authorities are reviewing a suspicious person of interest, sources said.
The FDNY said the cause of the June 19 blaze at the 173-year-old South Bushwick Reformed Church on Bushwick Avenue has not yet been officially determined.
Sources said investigators are still considering whether the historic wooden church may have been deliberately set on fire.
Authorities are examining video that reportedly shows a suspicious person of interest leaving the church not long before flames erupted, according to the sources.
Investigators are also carefully searching through the charred remains for any signs of criminal activity, though the scale of the destruction and heavy debris have complicated the process, the sources added.
The church, where the historic steeple collapsed during the fire, is now under a vacate order issued by the city’s Department of Buildings.
The three-alarm blaze sent thick smoke pouring into the sky and ripped through the house of worship, drawing a response from nearly 200 firefighters and EMS workers. FDNY officials said crews brought the fire under control after about two and a half hours.
The fire devastated much of the wooden structure, which was built in 1853, according to the National Fund for Sacred Places.
Parishioners of the South Bushwick Reformed Church – whose congregation was formed back in the 17th century by Dutch Settlers – are attempting to raise money and repair the place of worship, according to a GoFundMe.
