Original Yellow Leaf Baptist Church Burns Down After Tree Causes Fire

During yesterday’s storms around Oxford and Lafayette County, a tree fell onto the original Yellow Leaf Baptist Church and caused a fire. The building was destroyed as firefighters worked to put the fire out. The building was empty at the time of the fire, so no one was injured.
The building was erected in 1946, and although the new sanctuary was recently built, the original building had still been used for meals, Sunday School, and as a fellowship hall. Pastor Shane McGivney was at the scene and described what happened, and had an optimistic opinion that something new will come from the tragic event.

“A tree fell on the church and caused it to arc and caught the whole building on fire,” McGivney said. “I’m sure we’ll build something new there.”
Several church members were also at the scene this morning and discussed their reaction to the news.
“It’s like someone pouring hot water on you,” Mary Lou Conner, who cooks for the church, said.
“I was just devastated,” Vicki Bishop, who also cooks at the church, said. “The firefighters worked so diligently and were quickly able to stop the fire from spreading. The wind helped by pushing it away from the new sanctuary.”

“We’re just thankful it didn’t spread to the new sanctuary,” Dewey Hall said.
Mississippi Fire Marshalls are expected to do an evaluation of the structure as the day goes on.




HottyToddy.com will update this story when new information becomes available.

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Steven Gagliano is the managing editor of HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at steven.gagliano@hottytoddy.com.