‘Miracle of God’: Conway church resumes services after steeple hit by lightning

CONWAY, S.C. (WBTW) – White Savannah Free Will Baptist Church in Conway held its first Sunday service since lightning struck the steeple of the church on Tuesday.

Deacon Paul Grainger said the church has been in his family for many years. It was built 76 years ago in 1948.

The congregation had a small service on Wednesday night, the day after the lightning strike caused a fire and destroyed the steeple. Looking at the damage and seeing the way the building is today is “a miracle of God,” Grainger said.

Many members raced to the building when they heard about the fire, Grainger said, adding that it has been amazing to see everyone coming together to help.

“To see people come in, in the midst of what it is and getting wet and getting muddy and having that insulation on you, just to be here to be able to do something and not just that night but the next morning,” Grainger said.

Grainger said people helped the night of the fire and the next morning as well.

Firefighters had to pry open part of the church’s ceiling to create ventilation, but repairs are almost done, Grainger said. There is still plenty of debris, but once the building was cleared for people to go in, church members immediately started to help with the cleanup.

Grainger said it was a miracle the fire did not go through the roof.

“God controls the lightning,” he said. “That steeple that was on top of the church was 31 feet tall, made out of fiberglass. It struck it, and the first picture I got it was totally engulfed in flames. It never penetrated the roof. It burnt down to the point and thank God the fire department was here and they did an excellent job.”

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Hannah Huffstickler is a multimedia journalist at News13. She joined the News13 team in January 2024 after graduating from Coastal Carolina University in December of 2023. Keep up with Hannah on Facebook , X, formerly Twitter , and Instagram . You can also read more of her work here .

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