Firefighters battle a blaze at historic St Stephen's church in Ponsonby.
Video / Will Trafford / Paul Shaw
Police are treating a fire that severely St Stephen's Presbyterian Church in Ponsonby on Saturday as a potential arson.
Police have not responded to several requests for comment by the Herald today, but have lodged a reference to the fire in their computer system as arson.
A police spokeswoman saidthe reference determined the type of initial inquiry being made, "not specifically that an individual incident is definitively arson/suspicious".
The 141-year-old church on Jervois Rd billowed thick grey smoke across inner-city Auckland after it caught alight about 3pm on Saturday.
Eighteen fire trucks rushed to the scene, closing the road where the church has stood since 1879.
"We are working tirelessly in conjunction with engineers and safety specialists to put in the necessary precautions, as well as removing residual debris to keep everyone safe," he said.
"We are overwhelmed by the support of the wider community. Messages and little acts of kindness have come thick and fast. Thank you so much."
Many people were grieving the loss of the "stunning" heritage building, Ridout said.
"With the support of the wider community, we will restore it to something everyone can be proud of.
"We the church are more than our building, we continue to gather in community and to worship together on Sundays at 10am as we've always done. We're also planning a gathering on Christmas Eve in our hall. The public are very welcome to all services, as always."
A huge Fire and Emergency response was required to bring the blaze in the roof under control as 18 fire trucks rushed to the scene. The fire crew response closed Jervois Rd and the traffic quickly piled up around the busy arterial road where the church has stood since 1879.
At the height of the fire smoke could be seen from across Waitemata Harbour on Auckland's North Shore.
Reverend Grant Ridout was lost for words as he stood on the street watching his historic Ponsonby church burn.
Asked how he was coping at the height of the blaze, all Ridout could say was "I've been better."
He had no clue how the blaze had started with no one in the church and no construction work going on either.
The fire was in the roof of the single-storey church. Photo / Will Trafford
"Up there [in the roof of the church] it's just pretty much wooden rafters. The whole building is made of wood so there's nothing much up there, it's just cavity space," Ridout said eventually.
"I actually don't know a lot and I don't think they know a lot yet. Just trying to contain it and keep it under wraps as much as they can but there's not much information at this stage about how it started.
"The building was empty. I'm standing out the front and there's a lot of smoke.
"I don't know what it looks like on the inside or where things are at. We're just watching from a distance."
No one was injured in the fire.
Eighteen fire trucks attended the blaze on Jervois Rd, Ponsonby. Photo / Hayden Woodward
"It's a single-storey building but it has a double-skinned roof. The fire is in the roof therefore it is difficult to access," the fire spokesperson said.
