The fire began around 3:30 a.m. and has been knocked down, but a few issues remain; Crews remain on the scene -- spraying water on the leftover burning debris of the abandoned church also PG&E crews are working to restore power and it's still unknown whether anyone was trapped inside.
The flames were so high they could be seen from Highway 87.
The abandoned church, which was more than 100-years-old, is in the Delmas Park neighborhood, in downtown San Jose.
Firefighters say when they arrived, flames were shooting out of all the windows, live power lines were arching and it was just too dangerous to try saving the building. Neighbors were worried it could spread to their homes.
The old Victorian church building was known for having some issues with transients living inside at times, but it's still not known whether anyone was in there before the fire broke out. Arson investigators will go in later, possibly with search dogs, to check whether anyone was trapped inside.
There are redevelopment plans for this block of Delmas Avenue. Ironically, the church was the one building meant to be saved -- not now -- it's gone, burned to the frame.
