An early morning fire caused significant damage to the parish office at St. Stephen Cathedral in Owensboro, though no injuries were reported. The parish office will be closed for the time being, while the neighboring cathedral and diocesan buildings were spared, according to church officials.
Owensboro Fire Chief James Howard said crews were dispatched to the scene at 610 Locust Street at 12:39 a.m. and arrived just two minutes later. The fire was contained and knocked down by 1:03 a.m.
“Seven units responded with 19 personnel on scene,” Howard said. “The strategies and tactics applied made the incident manageable with larger structures on each side — including a cathedral — protected from any potential fire spread. We are grateful to our partners, especially OPD in this case, for identifying the smoky conditions and calling for us to respond so quickly in the middle of the night.”
Howard said the cause of the fire is still undetermined, though it is not being investigated as suspicious at this time.
The Rev. John M. Thomas, priest at St. Stephen Cathedral, said he was woken up around 1:30 a.m. and informed of the fire. He met with fire personnel, who walked him through the response.
“They really did some fantastic things that saved us a lot of damage,” Thomas said. “They took tarps over about four of the offices and covered the desks, computers, and things so that water damage would not damage things further. They climbed on the roof and created an opening, which kept the fire isolated. There’s a lot of damage in the center of the building — ceilings collapsed, water damage, and soot damage. It’s a mess, but it could have been much worse.”
Thomas said the parish office will be closed while staff reorganize and assess next steps. Insurance representatives were expected to assess the damage later in the day. It’s not yet clear whether the structure can be salvaged.
The fire did not impact the adjacent Cathedral Church or the diocesan McRaith Center.
“The preschool located in the McRaith Center is fully operational today, and the cathedral building has no damage from the fire at all,” Thomas said. “The only impact is that two heating units on that side of the church were shut down because their gas line runs through the parish office. But we still have heat and are maintaining our regular Mass schedule without interruption.”
Thomas said the church’s soup kitchen and emergency food pantry were temporarily inoperable but noted, “We want to return to our ministry and reaching especially the poor as quickly as we can.”
He added that support from the community has already begun, and anyone wanting to help is welcome to contact the parish office.
“We are so thankful to the emergency workers — the firefighters and emergency personnel,” Thomas said. “They acted quickly and so cleverly. The damage could have been so much worse. I’m just so thankful for their expertise and quick action. It was very, very well done.”
