WAYNESBURG, Pa. — Masses at the oldest Catholic church in Greene County are canceled after a fire caused serious damage to parts of the building Sunday.
According to the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, the fire at the Saint Ann site of Saint Matthias Parish in Waynesburg, Greene County, happened overnight.
The diocese says the main body of the church “appears to be intact,” but adjoining spaces sustained “extensive damage.” No one was hurt.
Diocese officials said all masses at the church are canceled for this week. The diocesan Jubilee Mass scheduled for Sept. 6 will be postponed.
Pennsylvania State Police are investigating the fire.
Saint Ann Church was founded in 1839. The diocese said it’s one of the designated pious visit sites for the Jubilee Year of Hope.
“It was unbelievable, it was very devastating. But, you know, very thankful that there was no loss of life,” said Saint Ann’s pastor, the Rev. Tom Lewandowski.
Lewandowski spent the better part of Sunday inside the church, cleaning up. He said the fire affected the priest’s vesting room, two classrooms and a bathroom.
“Most certainly it’s impacting the community and the parish as a whole because the parish is all of the county,” Lewandowski said.
Lewandowski said he’s working to relocate services to nearby Catholic churches in the meantime.
He also expressed gratitude to first responders for their quick action in preventing further destruction.
“Everything that got damaged can be replaced,” he said. “So we need to be grateful for that.”
Hours after the fire at Saint Ann, emergency crews were called to a fire at Buddy’s Hotel that damaged five rooms.
Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
©2025 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/XCUXZC2XYZHCRGNNGKFEX6U3LQ.png)
