Fire Damages North Miami-Dade Church

By Erika Beras And Tim Chapman, The Miami Herald

Jun. 25–A popular place of worship for North Miami Beach’s Haitian community was damaged by fire Monday morning.

The blaze broke out a little after 11 a.m. at the First Haitian Baptist Church of North Miami Beach at 15395 N. Miami Ave. The one-story, high-ceilinged, flat-roofed sanctuary has a 700-member congregation and is a community gathering place.

“This is terrible. There is no way to explain this,” Magalie Charles, wife of the pastor, who had left the church for half an hour and returned to find it ablaze.

Services have been canceled indefinitely.

Elizabeth Zesrameaux and her 6-year-old daughter were the only ones present when the fire began. Zesrameaux was cleaning up after Sunday’s services.

They escaped unscathed.

The fire started in an office area and spread to a neighboring room. Six Miami-Dade fire engines and six rescue units responded. It took them about 20 minutes to put out the fire.

Among the firefighters dispatched: Battalion Chief Bill Cordet, who is retiring after 31 years.

“This is the best part of the job — fighting fires,” Cordet said.

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