Fire engulfs former rectory in Schiedam, sending heavy smoke through neighborhood
A major fire broke out around midnight in the former rectory of the Heilig Hartkerk in Schiedam, sending heavy smoke through the surrounding neighborhood and prompting a large response from firefighters and police, Rijnmond reports.
No one was found inside the building, according to the Veiligheidsregio Rotterdam-Rijnmond.
The fire started late Saturday night and burned for more than an hour and a half before crews brought it fully under control.
The building, once the official residence of the parish priest, stands directly beside the tower of the now-vacant church at the corner of Lekstraat and Rijnstraat.
Emergency services responded in force after the blaze was discovered.
Residents were told to keep windows and doors shut because of the heavy smoke. Police closed Lekstraat to traffic during the firefighting operations.
