MEMPHIS, TN (abc24.com) - A Tuesday night fire destroyed the Gateway Church of God in Christ on Ketchum Road, but pastor Dr. Perry Little says he won't allow that fire to destroy their spirit.
Dr. Little says watching his church burn to the ground felt like "the death of a family member."
According to Lt. Wayne Cooke with the Memphis Fire Department, 41 pieces of fire EMS rescue apparatus and 103 emergency personnel battled the two-alarm fire.
The fire started after a gray pickup truck slammed into a utility pole in front of the church. The collision knocked power lines onto the roof, sparking a fire in the church attic.
"It's not the first time someone has hit that pole," Little said. "In times past, the line always broke away from the church and fell on parking lot without sending flames into the church… for whatever reason the line didn't break and stayed connected to the church and caused a fire."
Little says he, as well as his congregation, will stay connected to the word.
"We walk by faith and not by sight. We don't look at what we see as much as what we believe the future holds for us."
The congregation does plan to rebuild.
