Fire that damaged St. Joseph Catholic Church determined to be arson

More than 200 people gathered in the parking lot of St. Joseph Catholic Church for Mass Thursday afternoon, undeterred by the rain and determined to unite as a community after a four-alarm fire significantly damaged the downtown Salem church.

The church caught fire early Thursday morning following reports of a nearby dumpster fire. The fire destroyed the roof and part of the interior. It was contained to the church and didn't significantly impact the adjacent Catholic school, which is scheduled to open next week.

Thursday afternoon, Salem Police said investigators determined the fire was arson and an arrest had been made.

"This is a sad day," Fr. Jeff Meeuwsen, the church's pastor, said shortly before Mass began. "We will recover what we can, when we can. Keep praying for us."

Just hours after the fire started, members began gathering around the perimeter as Salem Fire continued to work the scene. The crowd grew throughout the morning.

The oldest Catholic parish in Salem, it has a diverse congregation and provides services in English, Spanish, Vietnamese and Latin.

"This is where I come to practice my faith," Julie Davenport said. "It's so sad to see something so treasured and sacred to so many — it's heartwrenching."

Numerous 911 calls

Salem Fire Department was dispatched at 2:31 a.m. to the church, 721 Chemeketa St. NE. The fire originally was called in as a dumpster fire on the northwest corner of the building, then quickly spread to the church roof.

Multiple 911 calls were made, with additional reports of heavy black smoke and flames on the roof. A second alarm was called at about 2:38 a.m. but rapidly escalated into third and fourth alarms.

Each additional alarm sent more apparatus and crews to battle the blaze. Deputy chief Brian Carrara said 20 apparatus and approximately 70 firefighters have been involved.

He said crews initially attempted to fight the fire from inside but retreated after 30 minutes to more effectively fight from the roof. Firefighters from one of the ladder trucks began venting the roof at about 3:22 a.m.

Crews used hoses from cranes and made slow progress until just before 5 a.m., when the fire appeared to no longer be spreading.

Fire crews remained on scene until late morning, using foam inside the church to douse remaining hotspots.

Due to the suspicious circumstances of the fire, Salem Police said, arson detectives from the Salem Police Felony Crimes Unit were called in to investigate. An individual was later arrested on suspicion of first-degree arson.

“My thanks to the officers and arson investigators who worked throughout the night on this case,” Salem Police Chief Trevor Womack said in a statement. “The church building holds a historical significance in our city, and their diligence in quickly apprehending the suspect helped to bring justice to the community.”

100 years of history

The church, located at the corner of Chemeketa and Cottage streets, was built in 1953, but its roots in Salem go back 100 years before that, according to a history summary on the parish website.

Its first home was a rented building on the corner of Church and Chemeketa streets, a location that served the church until 1864. A new church was dedicated that year, a wooden building with a seating capacity of 300.

Another new church was dedicated in 1889 on the corner of Chemeketa and Cottage streets and was used until the present church was dedicated in February 1953.

When the church was dedicated, the Capital Journal described it as being of modern design with concrete brick veneer and having a high-arched entryway of marble with recessed oaken doors with bronze symbols. The doors opened into the narthex with terrazzo floors.

Inside the sanctuary, with a seating capacity of about 700, the communion rail and main altar were made of marble and its pews of oak.

The church cost $400,000 to build, according to the newspaper.

Meeuwsen said he had been in Portland when he got a call at about 3 a.m. that a dumpster was on fire, and then that the church was on fire. He arrived as quickly as he could.

He said he has already been overwhelmed by the community support.

He said they will return to their regular Mass schedule Friday and into the weekend, and will gather in the gym or the parking lot.

Archbishop Alexander K. Sample attended and spoke during the Mass Thursday.

"I feel deeply for your loss," he told congregants, adding that he was moved by the large attendance. "This is a very powerful scene."

He said he will also join the parish at Mass Sunday.

Impact to school start

The church has a school that serves about 175 children in preschool through eighth grade. The school year is scheduled to begin Tuesday.

Principal Deborah Dewar said she was awoken at 3:30 a.m. Thursday with a text about the fire and a photo, and immediately went to the scene.

She said the school has minimal smoke damage and work began right away Thursday morning to begin cleaning the school areas and running the air filters in the school building.

"The number one priority is to get the kids in school on Tuesday," she said.

The primary issue for the school is power. The power for the school and church is connected and was off due to the fire. The room with the breakers was full of water Thursday.

Once the breakers can be accessed, they will try to isolate the power for the school and get it turned back on.

"There is lots of hope," Meeuwsen said.

A pillar of the community

From where deacon Leo Rasca was standing on Winter Street NE Thursday morning and from what he could see, the large archway over the altar area appears to have collapsed.

“St. Joseph's is not just a building, it's the people,” said Rasca, a deacon at the church for 11 years and a congregant for 30-plus years.

He said the church serves about 3,500 members.

Maria Ramirez Lopez attends the Spanish language Mass at the church weekly. She arrived at about 9:30 a.m. and saw the church taped off. She thought it had flooded, and then realized what had happened.

She said in Spanish she's been a member of the congregation since she emigrated to the United States. She was married in the church in 2003, and all four of her children were baptized there.

There are lots of memories, she said, getting emotional.

Anna Maria Cobb, a photographer and parishioner, said she learned about the fire in a 7:30 a.m. text from a friend.

"It was rough because my family's business burnt down a few years ago and it was like the same thing, getting contacted early in the morning to find out that something important to me had been burning," Cobb said.

Her family's business, Hidden Bed of Oregon, was one of several destroyed during a four-alarm fire in October 2021 in Mt. Angel.

Dianne Lugo covers the Oregon Legislature and equity issues. Reach her at dlugo@statesmanjournal.com or on Twitter @DianneLugo

Capi Lynn is a senior reporter for the Statesman Journal. Send comments, questions and tips to her at clynn@statesmanjournal.com or 503-399-6710.

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Fire that damaged St. Joseph Catholic Church determined to be arson