Maintenance on Pedoulas church sparks blaze, fire brigade bring it under control

A fire that broke out at the local church in Pedoulas has been brought under control by firefighters on Thursday afternoon.

“The fire is under control. It was put out by a forestry department fire engine, which was first to reach the scene. The area is being inspected and ventilated,” according to fire brigade spokesman Andreas Kettis in a post on his personal Twitter account.

Kettis noted that part of the church’s iconostasis, the screen of icons in front of the altar, had been burnt in the blaze. The church also suffered damage due to the smoke and hot gases from the fire, he added.

“The fire was caused by maintenance work that was being carried out on the iconostasis,” Kettis said in his Tweet.