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Peru church fire extinguished early Easter Sunday

Fire chief credits motorist who spotted smoke emanating from lighted cross

An Easter Sunday fire behind the cross at Faith Church on Wenzel Road in Peru might have been worse if not for a keen-eyed passerby. The siding around the cross was scorched by a failing light.

An Easter Sunday fire behind the cross at Faith Church on Wenzel Road in Peru might have been worse if not for a keen-eyed passerby. The siding around the cross was scorched by a failing light. (Tom Collins)

By Tom Collins

A keen-eyed motorist may have saved a Peru church from fire early Easter Sunday.

Peru firefighters were dispatched at 12:02 a.m. to Faith Church on Wenzel Road after a passerby spotted smoke issuing from the church.

Firefighters quickly put out the fire, which was determined to have been set off by a light behind the cross mounted on an outside wall.

“It was kind of eerie,” Fire Chief Jeff King said of the cross emitting smoke.

See the scorch marks around the arm of the cross? The damage at Faith Church on Wenzel Road in Peru, reported early Sunday, April 5, 2026, would have been worse had a passing motorist not spotted smoke and called Peru Fire Department.

See the scorch marks around the arm of the cross? The damage at Faith Church on Wenzel Road in Peru, reported early Sunday, April 5, 2026, would have been worse had a passing motorist not spotted smoke and called Peru Fire Department. (Tom Collins)

There were no injuries and firefighters were on scene less than a half hour. La Salle, Oglesby, Spring Valley and Utica assisted.

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Tom Collins

Tom Collins

Tom Collins covers criminal justice in La Salle County.