Firefighters Rescue Holy Scrolls From Synagogue Fire

HOUSTON — Arson investigators ruled Thursday that the fire at a southwest Houston synagogue was accidentally set just days before the start of Hanukkah. The fire happened shortly after 9:15 p.m. Wednesday at the Torah Vachesed synagogue on South Braeswood Boulevard.

According to Rabbi Avraham Yaghobian, there were about 30 worshipers at the synagogue involved in a study, when a Pct.5 deputy constable who was driving past, saw the fire outside the building, and immediately called 911.

Yaghobian said the deputy constable burst through the front door and told everyone the building was on fire and helped evacuate the worshipers.

Worshipers who were worried about saving the holy books inside the synagogue tried to put the fire out themselves before firefighters arrived, Yaghobian said.

Firefighters arrived a short time later, and were able to extinguish the blaze within 15 minutes.
The initial investigation indicated that the fire started in the back of the building, and burned into the attic.

No one was injured in the blaze, and holy items inside the synagogue were not harmed, officials said. Services to celebrate the start of Hanukkah on Dec. 2, have been canceled.

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