Vandals trash Halifax church, steal bells

CTV Atlantic: Vandals trash church, steal bells Vandals have trashed a Halifax church, stealing four large irreplaceable bells and causing widespread damage.

Vandals have trashed a Halifax church, stealing four large irreplaceable bells and causing widespread damage.

A few days ago, thieves cut their way through the stained-glass windows of the chapel at St. John’s United Church on Willow Street.

The church had already fallen on hard times and now it faces an even more uncertain future.

“We think they came in over the weekend, figured out what could be melted down and what couldn’t,” says Rev. Dr. Linda Yates.

Yates says it appears the main target may have been an old safe. The handle was broken off, but the safe itself was too heavy to move.

She says the thieves then moved onto the bell tower.

“Somebody thought it made sense to steal some beautiful bells from an abandoned church, make a small amount of money out of some extremely heavy bells.”

Thirteen bells rang from the church’s bell tower for roughly a century. Now, one lies on the damaged floor and another was found outside. Four bells remain missing.

“You know, they’re not worth a lot, but they’re worth a lot to us,” says Yates.

The vandals also damaged one of the pipes on the organ, and cut a hole through a fence on the property.

The church has been closed for about five years due to faulty brick work that led to severe water damage.

The long-term goal is to build a new church. For now, the congregation worships at another facility next door.

“We’d like our bells back,” says Yates. “If we are able to build a new building, we would like them to feature in the architecture of the new building.”

With files from CTV Atlantic's Jayson Baxter