A Schuyler County community is in mourning for the loss of a fixture in their community. Fire crews responded to a call Thursday afternoon to flames coming from the Camden United Methodist Church at around 3:30PM. The church has served the community of 100 people since 1913. Pastor Dan Wise told WGEM that local firefighters were able to save the altar Bible and the American Flag from the sanctuary while they fought flames and smoke. The Schuyler County Protection District Fire Chief was unable to locate the origin of the fire and the Illinois State Fire Marshall’s investigation of the fire ruled the cause to be undetermined. Camden is located about 12 miles north of Mt. Sterling and 12 miles west of Rushville.
Church members spent their worship services at the Brooklyn United Methodist Church, a town less than 5 miles north on Route 99 on Monday. Wise told WGEM that insurance adjusters will be coming to look at the building today for total damages and estimate a cost of repairs.
