Mayor of Loon Lake devastated over loss of church

The community of Loon Lake,located about 150 km northwest of North Battleford,is devastated after a blazing fire burned a church to the ground.

The mayor of the village, Brian Hirschfeld, said the church was built in 1939, and held monthly community services.

"It should have been a heritage site but that didn't happen," Hirschfeld said. "It was kind of the last of the main old structures of the village."

RCMP said in a news release on Sunday that the church located on Main Street was fully engulfed in flames when officers arrived on Saturday morning.

No one was at the church at the time of the fire.

They said the investigation into what caused the fire is in the early stages, and is asking anyone who saw anything suspicious, or who has information about the fire, to contact them.

Hirschfeld said the community has seen a huge rise in crime and vandalism since the summer, though he is not sure if the church fire is connected to that.

He said he is considering calling a state of emergency.

"We're just looking for help, looking for support, looking for an answer to deal with all this," Hirshfeld said.