Austin, Texas, Jul 30, 2019 / 16:30 pm
Federal agents have joined the investigation of a fire that ravaged and destroyed a 125 year-old landmark Catholic Church in central Texas on Monday.
Firefighters responded to the blaze at the historic Church of the Visitation in Westphalia, Texas on Monday morning.
While the tabernacle containing the Eucharist was saved by nearby residents, nearly everything else was destroyed, including a century-old organ and stained-glass windows imported from Germany, according to local news channel KWTX.
"(It's) extremely difficult and painful to be here," Bishop Joe Vasquez of the Diocese of Austin, who visited the scene of the fire on Monday, told KWTX.
"I'm very deeply affected by this and I know the people here are also heartbroken," he added.