In the small hours of a Monday morning, a fire woke a neighbourhood in Napier and left a ninety-four-year-old house of worship in ruins at its heart. St Paul's Presbyterian Church on Tennyson Street, rebuilt in 1932 after an earlier church was lost to the 1931 earthquake, now stands with its sanctuary gutted and its roof buckled, though its outer walls hold firm on their steel trusses. The cause remains unknown, and in a city that has rebuilt itself before, the congregation now faces the quieter task of deciding what its community will look like without the room that held it together.
Mystery Fire Guts 94-Year-Old St Paul's Presbyterian Church in Napier
Less than 24 hours after the Sunday service, the sanctuary lay smouldering
Mark
Why does this one stand out, when Napier had other fires that night?
Mimi
Because of what was lost. St Paul's was built in 1932, after the 1931 earthquake destroyed the original, and the sanctuary and its pews are now ruined. People there marked weddings and funerals.
Luke
Do we know what caused it?
Mimi
No. Police are making inquiries, and Reverend Johnston said nothing has been confirmed.
Luke
Then the word "mystery" is doing honest work. Nobody should connect it to the arson arrest.
Mark
Police say the arrest is unrelated, right?
Mimi
Yes. The 47-year-old was charged over a Market Street fire, and there was a separate Bower Street fire around 12.50am. Neither is linked to the church by police.
Luke
Worth noting the reporting doesn't say the church fire was deliberate or accidental. Both remain open.
Mark
What survived?
Mimi
The outer structure, thanks to metal trusses, plus the offices, lounge, kitchen and toilets.
Luke
But "unrepairable" is Johnston's assessment. We haven't seen a formal engineering report.
Mark
And what happens to the congregation?
Mimi
Johnston expects a temporary venue within days, likely with another parish, and says they'll have to reimagine their future on the site.
Il Polso
- A neighbour's dog growling at 1.30am was the first warning of a fire that would consume the heart of a century-old church.
- The main sanctuary is gone and the roof has buckled, leaving a building that looks whole from the street but is hollow within.
- Police are making inquiries into a fire with no confirmed cause, even as a separate arson charge has been laid elsewhere in Napier that same night.
- Co-minister Mark Johnston says the damage cannot be repaired quickly, and the congregation is searching for a temporary home while the offices, lounge and kitchen remain usable.
- The community is expected to settle on a new meeting place within days, though the question of the site's future remains open.
In the small hours of a Monday morning, a fire woke a neighbourhood in Napier and left a ninety-four-year-old house of worship in ruins at its heart. St Paul's Presbyterian Church on Tennyson Street, rebuilt in 1932 after an earlier church was lost to the 1931 earthquake, now stands with its sanctuary gutted and its roof buckled, though its outer walls hold firm on their steel trusses. The cause remains unknown, and in a city that has rebuilt itself before, the congregation now faces the quieter task of deciding what its community will look like without the room that held it together.
Jason Lake was asleep in his flat one block from Tennyson Street when his dog began to growl. At 1.30am on Monday, the sound of a fire pulled him awake. By morning, St Paul's Presbyterian Church, a building that had stood in Napier's centre for ninety-four years, had been gutted.
Reverend Mark Johnston, who has co-led the congregation for two years alongside his wife, Reverend Carolyn Kelly, had been in the church on Sunday for the 10am service. Less than a day later, he was looking at it smouldering, and he said the sight was deeply upsetting. The main sanctuary is lost, the roof has buckled, and the pews from the original church, lost in the 1931 earthquake, are charred or destroyed. The outer structure survives, held up by metal trusses. Johnston was clear that it will not be a quick repair.
Not everything burned. The administration offices, lounge, kitchen and toilets remain usable, giving the congregation some space to gather while they decide what comes next. Police are making inquiries, but no cause has been confirmed.
For the people who worship there, the building holds years of celebrations and farewells. Johnston says they are a resilient group who know the church will endure, even if they must reimagine their life on this site. He expects a temporary location to be arranged within days, with help from neighbouring parishes. Napier Mayor Richard McGrath hopes the congregation will not be displaced for long, since the city needs places like St Paul's at its centre.
Jason Lake was in his flat, one block from Tennyson Street in Napier, when his dog began growling and the sound of a fire woke him at 1.30am on Monday. By the time the night was over, St Paul's Presbyterian Church, a 94-year-old building in the city's centre, had been gutted.
Reverend Mark Johnston has been co-minister at St Paul's for two years, alongside his wife, Reverend Carolyn Kelly. He had last been in the church on Sunday, for the 10am service. Less than 24 hours later he was looking at it smouldering. He described that as upsetting.
The damage, he said, is significant and cannot be repaired. The main sanctuary was lost and the roof buckled. The outer structure still stands, held up by metal trusses. Inside, the pews from the original church, which was lost in the 1931 earthquake, were charred or destroyed. The present church was built in 1932. "It's devastated the whole sanctuary," Johnston said, adding that it was not going to be a quick fix.
Not everything was lost. The administration offices, lounge, kitchen and toilets are still operable, which leaves the congregation with some usable space on the site.
The cause is not known. Police were making inquiries on Monday, and Johnston said there was no confirmation of what had happened. The fire has been described as a mystery, and nothing in the reporting ties it to any particular cause.
For the congregation, Johnston said, the building holds special memories. Members have spent a great deal of time there celebrating and mourning loved ones. He said they are great people who rally, and who know the church will continue, but that they will have to reimagine their future on this physical site. He has not yet confirmed where the next service will be held. The church has good relationships with other parishes, and he expects a location to be settled within days.
Lake said he was saddened that a congregation and a community had lost its church. Napier Mayor Richard McGrath said the town needs places like St Paul's in the middle of the city, both for worship and for community meetings. He hoped the congregation would not be out of its building for long and wished them well in getting things back to normal.
Police also dealt with two other fires in Napier that night, which they say are unrelated to the church fire. Emergency services were called to a building on Bower Street at about 12.50am after reports of smoke, and the building then caught alight. Several hours later, police were notified of a suspicious fire in an alleyway on Market Street. A 47-year-old man was arrested and charged with wilfully setting fire to the Market Street property, and with arson. He has been remanded in custody.
What to watch for now is the police inquiry into the church fire, and the announcement of a temporary home for the congregation's services.
Citazioni salienti
It's devastated the whole sanctuary. It's not going to be a quick fix.— Reverend Mark Johnston, co-minister of St Paul's
Hopefully they're not down for too long.— Napier Mayor Richard McGrath
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