Worshippers left a Mableton church during a Sunday sermon after a fire was reported, FOX 5 Atlanta reported. The congregation went to the parking lot as a precaution. No injuries were reported.
What national fire data can show
The U.S. Fire Administration estimated that U.S. fire departments reported an average of 1,300 fires in places of worship each year from 2020 to 2022. In that period, cooking accounted for 33% of fires in these buildings, making it the leading reported cause; intentional actions accounted for another 15%. Those national figures describe fires overall and do not identify what caused the smoke in Mableton.
Safety checks for places of worship
The U.S. Fire Administration recommends that congregations check for two ways out of each room, a visible escape plan, smoke alarms and damaged or overloaded electrical cords or outlets. These are general precautions, not findings about the church involved in the Mableton evacuation.
