Residents in Grandview, West Virginia, are grappling with the aftermath of a fire that destroyed a local church, leaving behind a scene of destruction and unexpected preservation.
The blaze at Freedom Ministries Church on Sunday forced firefighters to temporarily withdraw due to its intensity, according to the Coal City Fire Department. Despite the flames consuming much of the structure, investigators found a remarkable anomaly in the wreckage.
"In your mind, everything should be burned, ashes. Not a single Bible was burned and not a single cross was harmed," the department wrote in a viral Facebook post. The message was accompanied by images of a stack of approximately a dozen Bibles untouched by the fire, surrounded by debris.
The post emphasized the firefighters' relief that no personnel were injured during the operation. "Though the odds were against us, God was not," the department added. Authorities have not yet determined the fire's origin, but no casualties were reported.
