"Touchdown Jesus" Destroyed by Fire

[HeatherC1212]

I don't know how many other people here had seen that statue of Jesus at the Solid Rock Church in Monroe (just north of Cincy) but it apparently got struck by lightening last night around 11:15 PM. The crews got there too late and couldn't save it and now it's completely burned to the ground except for the metal frame. This has apparently made national news along with our local news and honestly, I'm surprised it didn't happen sooner since the thing seemed to be a lightening rod waiting to happen being so tall and sitting in a somewhat flat area.

Here's a couple of links that have some photos and more about the story although you can find this news on just about every site now. I didn't realize this would be such a big story! I'm glad no one was hurt at the church and that there's no damage to the actual church. There's supposed to be a press conference of some sort around 10 AM today so I guess they'll talk about the damage and their future plans there.

Link: http://www.wlwt.com/news/23900484/detail.html

Yahoo Story: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_lightn...s_jesus_statue

[redsfandan]

YouTube - Touchdown Jesus Struck By Lightning
Apparently, ...
Quote

"The statue was constructed of wood and styrofoam over a steel framework that was anchored in concrete and covered with a fiberglass mat and resin exterior, according to the church. It was slated to undergo renovations this summer."

If that's what they used to build it then I'm kinda surprised that it lasted this long. A huge lightning rod covered with flammable material.

[savafan]

Story has gone international, saw a report on a Bangkok, Thailand news site.

[HeatherC1212]

Here's a link to some images that News 5 has of everything that happened last night along with some images from this morning. Maybe they won't make it a total lightening rod this time when they rebuild it.

http://www.wlwt.com/slideshow/news/23900652/detail.html

[Ghosts of 1990]

This is so symbolic, IMO.

[The Operator]

Despite being a Christian, I was never too fond of that thing.

That being said, I hate that this happened to it. And that definitely was not the best combination of building materials to use for such a project. Like others, I'm almost surprised it lasted this long. Still very unfortunate, though.

[GIDP]

It's just so wildly ironic, especially because of the Iconism.

[HeatherC1212]

Despite being a Christian, I was never too fond of that thing.

That being said, I hate that this happened to it. And that definitely was not the best combination of building materials to use for such a project. Like others, I'm almost surprised it lasted this long. Still very unfortunate, though.

I share that sentiment. I always thought the thing was slightly tacky and that a church should really use their financial resources for something more practical. I am sad that this happened to the church though and also surprised that it lasted this long.

Here's another article that talks more about the damage. It's estimated to be around $700,000 total. Apparently there was some sound equipment in that amphitheater behind the statue that was also destroyed which is probably what made that total much higher than I thought it would be.

http://www.wcpo.com/dpp/news/region_...troyed-by-fire

[Reds Freak]

In memory of the statue (posted good-naturedly)...

YouTube - Big Butter Jesus by Heywood Banks

[Roy Tucker]

During last night's storms, we were watching the lightning from inside the garage. I made the comment that this is real wrath-of-God kind of stuff.

[Chip R]

Can you imagine someone going up/down 75 last night and seeing the statue on fire? How surreal would that be?

[Blimpie]

Wow, I just saw the photos from the fire. That was no minor blaze...

That sucker went Hindenburg on us.

[Johnny Footstool]

Wow, I just saw the photos from the fire. That was no minor blaze...

That sucker went Hindenburg on us.

Did you see the list of building materials they used? I wouldn't be surprised if there was some hydrogen tucked away somewhere in that thing.

[Caveat Emperor]

During last night's storms, we were watching the lightning from inside the garage. I made the comment that this is real wrath-of-God kind of stuff.

I made a comment to a friend to the effect of "You can really understand why the Greeks thought this sort of stuff meant the gods were warring with one another."

AMAZING storm last night.

[dabvu2498]

Guarantee the build it back. Almost certain they'll build it back bigger.

I always thought the thing was slightly tacky and that a church should really use their financial resources for something more practical.

I've always found it ironic that many of the folks that attend the Bishop's church come from fairly low income backgrounds, and yet, don't seem to mind that the Bishop's church and home -- the LB (Lawrence Bishop) Ranch, located just south of SRC on the opposite side of the interstate -- are so ostentatious.