“Lights flickered like in a disco”
That afternoon, the church was filled with a festive mood – wedding and baptism ceremonies were taking place simultaneously. The festive calm was instantly broken by a deafening crash.
As the church caretaker Mika Kangasaho later told Finland’s national broadcaster “Yle,” the impact was unexpected and incredibly strong.
“Suddenly a terrible sound echoed. The lightning struck with such force that the church lights began flickering like in a disco. Everyone was very frightened,” he recalled.
Although the main electric chandelier went out and the fire alarm was damaged, no obvious signs of fire were noticed at that time. It was decided not to panic – the wedding and baptism participants continued the ceremonies and successfully completed them.
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The fire was noticed only after the prayers ended
Firefighters rushed to the church several times that day. The first signal was received even before the incident from a nearby building, but nothing suspicious was found then. Even after the lightning strike, the first inspection showed no danger.
The true situation became clear only when the ceremony participants left the church. When M. Kangasaho went outside, people on the street began gesturing towards the top of the building. The attentiveness of young passersby was crucial – they noticed smoke rising from the cross on the highest church tower.
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Complex rescue operation at 17 meters height
As many as 20 rescue service crews were sent to the scene. It turned out that the lightning caused a sneaky, smoldering fire inside the wooden structures of the tower.
The rescue work was complicated by the height – the fire source was about 17 meters up. To reach the fire, firefighters had to perform very difficult work: use a tall boom crane, remove the gilded cross from the top of the dome, dismantle part of the historic roof structures.
Thanks to the firefighters’ efforts, the fire did not spread to the main part of the church, but extinguishing the fire and dismantling the structures continued until late evening.
Historic building temporarily silenced
After the lightning strike, the church was temporarily closed, but since July 25th, services and other religious ceremonies have resumed there. However, due to remaining electrical system damages, it is not yet fully open to visitors.
St. Alexander Nevsky and St. Nicholas Church is one of the most important architectural monuments in Tampere, built back in 1899.
