Second Fire Started At Church Of The Nazarene In Concord Monday; Arson Suspect Arrested

For the second time in a week firefighters were sent to an Ashbury Drive church in Concord after a suspicious fire broke out on scene.

The Church of the Nazarene at 1650 Ashbury was heavily damaged in an early-morning blaze determined to have been started in a crawlspace on Thursday morning. A large portion of the church was later determined to be structurally unsound.

A second fire was reported burning in an undamaged area of the church at 12:07 a.m. Monday morning with firefighters returning to find flames in the attic space.

An investigator was called to the scene and police are reportedly following up on reports that a person was seen leaving the area shortly before the fire was reported. A “person of interest” detained for questioning by Concord police was later arrested on suspicion of arson.