Post Falls Church Fire Displaces Schools, Congregation; No Injuries Reported

Pastor Steve Karst rounded a hill off Highway 41 around 4 a.m. Sunday and saw his Post Falls church in flames. "I could see some of the flames, and I knew right then and there, it's a massive fire," Karst said. "So that was an emotional moment for me."

The fire heavily damaged the River Church campus at 1600 East Horsehaven Avenue, gutting the back portion of the 45,000-square-foot building where Little Explorers Learning Center and River Tech School of Performing Arts and Technology operate. The second-story roof collapsed and there was extensive damage to one end of the structure, according to Kootenai County Fire and Rescue interim fire chief Pete Holley. Part of the building was saved.

Kootenai County Fire and Rescue received the call around 4 a.m. Crews arriving to flames requested a second alarm, and firefighters from Coeur d'Alene Fire Department, Northern Lakes Fire District, Hauser Lake Fire District, and Spokane Valley Fire all responded. KCFR noted that "challenges with accessing the fire" kept crews on scene through the late morning hours, ultimately spending roughly four hours fighting the blaze. The building was empty; no injuries were reported.

More than 100 students from the two campus schools have been displaced, according to early reports, though River Tech principal Dan Hegelund said his school enrolls about 75 students. "We've been told we won't be able to use this building at least between now and summer break, and potentially not after summer break either," Hegelund said. "We want to work efficiently to get them back to school as fast as possible."

Little Explorers owner Jill Verburg received one of the first phone calls Sunday morning. "Driving up and seeing all of those flames right above our section was disheartening and very sad," she said. She added that she is unsure whether any equipment inside can be salvaged, even in sections the fire did not fully destroy, since the water used to suppress the blaze caused considerable additional damage throughout the interior. One parent has already launched a fundraiser to help the preschool recover, and Verburg said community support has begun.

River Church member Sarah Williams described watching the building burn: "We were thinking about all of the things that were not going to happen and had to be rescheduled or changed because we knew we were not going to be able to go back into that building."

Karst canceled Sunday morning services and invited the congregation to gather and pray on the church grounds. "Our building may be damaged," he said, "but the church, the body of Christ, is alive and well."

Post Falls Police Department Lt. Brian Harrison confirmed the department received calls around 4 a.m. and that no one was inside. PFPD is treating the scene as a crime scene while investigators determine whether a criminal act occurred. The Idaho State Fire Marshal's Office had an investigator on site Monday, and deputy fire marshal Tyrel Shaw confirmed the cause remains under investigation. One church member told reporters she feared the building may ultimately have to be torn down.