Estonia: Arson suspected as 19th-century wooden church goes up in flames twice this year

Narva-Jõesuu, Estonia, June 21, 2021

Photo: Sergei Stepanov/ERR Photo: Sergei Stepanov/ERR     

The picturesque, 19th-century wooden Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in the Estonian resort town of Narva-Jõesuu went up in flames for the second time this year last Thursday.

More than 100 objects of high cultural value were damaged in the first incident in February, reports news.err.ee. Arson is suspected in both cases.

The Emergency Response Center was alerted to the second fire a little after 4:20 AM on Thursday, and the fire was extinguished a little before 6:15 AM.

The wooden fittings were totally destroyed, and there is substantial damage to the walls and roof.

A police investigation is ongoing.

***

The church before the fires. Photo: kaasanitempel.info The church before the fires. Photo: kaasanitempel.info     

The Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God was built in 1867 in Mereküla. Nearly all the buildings and monuments in the city were destroyed during the fierce battles of 1944, but the Kazan Church miraculously survived, reports Foma.

From 1946 to 1948, the church was moved to Narva-Jõesuu piece by piece, where it stood intact until this year’s fires.

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6/21/2021

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