Episcopal Press and News
Unlucky 13 Churches Damaged in L.A. Quake
Episcopal News Service. October 8, 1987 [87205]
Bob William, Diocese of Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES (DPS, Oct. 8) -- Stained glass shattered, organ pipes shot out of their footings and bell towers cracked and teetered at Episcopal churches in the Los Angeles area when a magnitude-6.1 earthquake rocked Southern California on Thursday, Oct. 1.
The 7:42 a.m. temblor toppled parish-hall chimneys and coated pews with chips of plaster that priests and parishioners worked to clear away before services on Sunday, Oct. 4. But a 5.5-intensity aftershock hit at 3:58 that morning, bringing down more debris just hours before early Masses.
One church has been closed, and some 12 others across East Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley have reported varying degrees of damage. Losses were estimated to total at least $200,000 as of Oct. 5.
Church members carried out clean-up operations in weekend temperatures of 108 degrees, nervously wondering if another strong aftershock might wreak more havoc.
In the hard-hit community of Whittier, St. Matthias Church sustained cracks to interior archways and exterior stucco, but engineers say the entire Spanish-style parish complex is structurally sound.
Rector Chester H. Howe II believes that it will probably cost $50-$70,000 to repair the reinforced-concrete church, which was built in 1929. Howe said he is confident the congregation can raise that amount.
Located about six miles south of the Whittier Narrows area where the quake was centered, the church is being called "St.Matthias-by-the-Fault" by good-humored parishioners.
Because the church has remained open for regular Eucharists and a daily soup hour launched several years ago, St. Matthias staff members have been able to refer local residents to the Red Cross shelter and other service centers in Whittier, where California Gov. George Deukmejian has declared a state of emergency.
One family who attends St. Matthias was left homeless by the quake, and the church is working to help locate housing for those parishioners.
The most heavily damaged church in the Diocese of Los Angeles appears to be St. James, South Pasadena -- an 80-year-old Gothic-revival structure that was recently designated a state historic landmark.
The church is located about ten miles north of the quake's epicenter.
Determining that the church's stone-and-brick tower had been weakened and could collapse onto either the nave or an adjacent busy street, city inspectors cornered off the sanctuary and offices as unsafe.
Rector Harold F. Knowles II said the church's large rose window is also in danger of crumbling.
Noting that damage was still being assessed by structural engineers and two parishioners who are architects, Knowles said the total cost of repairs "could run into six figures."
Church officials say there is little money on hand to meet these expenses, but they hope St. James will qualify for financial assistance as a state landmark.
At another seriously damaged church -- Ascension, Sierra Madre -- Sunday activities were carried out as scheduled, even though part of the sanctuary and parish hall have been roped off by the fire department.
Sunday's aftershock pulled a ceiling beam away from one wall of the quaint granite-and-fir church, built in 1888 in the foothills just east of Pasadena.
Stonework around the church was weakened, and three chimneys outside the parish hall and rectory were badly damaged. Rector Michael Bamberger said damage -- including losses to the church's gift shop -- could total $10-$20,000, although final estimates had not yet been tabulated. He said the church has reserve funds on hand to meet repair expenses.
Structural damage didn't stop the congregation from holding a traditional "Blessing of the Animals" service in honor of the Feast of St. Francis, which was observed in many churches the Sunday after the earthquake. Ascension parishioners surveyed the impact of the temblor and Sunday's aftershock with dogs, cats, rabbits and other pets in tow.
Other Episcopal churches sustained superficial cracks in plaster, loosened roof tiles, shattered windows and a lot of broken dishes. Such damage was reported at churches in Arcadia, East Los Angeles, Echo Park, El Monte, Monterey Park, Pasadena, San Gabriel and San Marino.
All Saints, Pasadena -- the largest Episcopal congregation west of the Mississippi -- closed its tower, balcony and side chapel after cracks were detected following Sunday's aftershock. The extent of that damage has not yet been determined, but it is not believed to be extreme.
In Monterey Park, a community included in the state of emergency declared by Deukmejian, St. Gabriel's Church sustained several broken windows. Assisted by a bishop's committee member of this Chinese mission congregation, Vicar Benjamin Pao spent the day of the quake boarding up the church.
The Episcopal Home for the Aged in Alhambra is located about half a mile from where Sunday's aftershock was centered near Rosemead. The Rev. George Cummings, director of the facility, said damage was limited to a few cracks, broken china and a water-heater that pulled away from a wall, but many of the home's elderly residents were frightened by the shake-up.
At Diocesan House in downtown Los Angeles, books and archival materials were knocked from shelves, and water pipes required repair.
Many churches around the diocese were fortified for earthquakes after the 1971 Sylmar temblor. That quake severely damaged the Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Los Angeles and eventually forced its demolition in 1980.