Cause of East Side fire is investigated

Cause of East Side fire is investigated

YOUNGSTOWN

The cause of a fire early Saturday at an East Side church remains undetermined, says Capt. Kurt Wright, the fire department’s investigator.

The Morning Star Baptist Church, 744 Willow St., was destroyed after a blaze that broke out about 4:30 a.m. Saturday. Police answering an alarm call at the church discovered the flames and called the fire department.

Reports said the building’s roof collapsed, which Wright said would make it hard to determine a cause of the blaze because the debris would need to be dug out to look inside the church. The fire is not considered suspicious, Wright said. Damage is listed at $61,000. The church did not have insurance, Wright said.

Block Watch

YOUNGSTOWN

Four Square Block Watch will meet at 6 p.m. Thursday at Greater Friendship Baptist Church, 646 Lakewood Ave.

Students honored

YOUNGSTOWN

The city school board honored members of the city middle-school eighth-grade basketball team and the seventh- and eighth-grade cheerleaders Tuesday. The team won the All American Conference Tournament. The board also recognized students at Choffin Career and Technical Center who placed at the regional career-technical Skills USA Competition and presented Penny Wells, director of Sojourn to the Past, with an Award of Excellence for the group’s receipt of Coretta Scott King Angel Award for Nonviolence.

Neighbors group

YOUNGSTOWN

The Southside Neighbors group invites the community to meet with city and Mahoning County officials, ministers and other leaders from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the Newport branch library, 3730 Market St. A meet-and-greet is set for 3:30 to 4 p.m. Refreshments will be provided by Flambeau’s.

Recovery Court

CAMPBELL

The Ohio Supreme Court has granted initial certification to Girard Municipal Court for a Recovery Court. Girard has been operating a drug Recovery Court pilot program since May 2015, according to Judge Joseph Adler. The program aims to rehabilitate nonviolent drug offenders in order to break the cycle of dependency and crime.

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