A large fire destroyed on Saturday, October 17, an abandoned warehouse in Staten Island, endangering a historical church used for the filming of the Padrino, the 1972 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The flames spread around 17:40 in the Mount Loretto complex, in the Pleasant Plains district, and required more than 200 firefighters and emergency workers. The church of St. Joachim and St. Anne, located a few metres from the burned-out building, has no damage.
The warehouse was located along Hylan Boulevard and was unused for at least five years. When the first means of firefighters arrived on the spot, the fire had already affected much of the structure. The flames spread rapidly and the roof collapsed, forcing the teams to keep away from the walls standing for the risk of further cediments.
The New York Fire Department has classified the fire as four-alarm fire, an alarm level requiring the sending of numerous teams and rescue vehicles. The operations were complicated by the strong wind, which transported sparks and glowing material to the surrounding buildings. As explained by the head of operations of FDNY, Kevin Woods, in a reconstruction of ABC7 New York, firemen focused part of the intervention on the protection of neighboring structures.
The initial alarm indicated a possible church fire. Only with the arrival of the rescuers was clarified that the fire had developed in the back warehouse. The Mount Loretto complex comprises 36 buildings, including two schools and an old town. None of these structures were reached by the flames.
According to updates published by NBC New York, a firefighter and a civilian reported minor injuries. The authorities declared the fire under control around 20:30, but some teams remained in place during the night to shut down the last outbreaks and guard the unstable parts of the building.
The church saved by the fire is also known for its connection with the history of cinema. The facade of St. Joachim and St. Anne appears in the sequence of the baptism of the first Father, the one in which Michael Corleone, interpreted by Al Pacino, becomes the godfather of his sister Connie’s son while his men eliminate some of the main opponents of the family.
The sequence alternates the religious ceremony with the murders ordered by Michael and is one of the most famous passages of the film. Coppola used two different churches to make it: the internal shooting was carried out in the Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Little Italy, Manhattan, while the church of Mount Loretto, in the southern part of Staten Island was chosen for the outside images. The reconstruction of the scenes published by Movie-Locations documents both locations.
The Staten Island building already has a story marked by fire. In 1973, shortly after the film was released, a fire almost completely destroyed the original church, saving its main façade. The structure was rebuilt in 1976, with a smaller size than the previous building. The preserved façade still allows today to recognize the place used by Coppola.
Mount Loretto has a story before the movie. The complex was founded in the nineteenth century as a Catholic institution dedicated to child care and, over time, has become a centre that hosts educational activities and social services. Today it is run within Catholic Charities activities and includes buildings used by schools and organizations that assist people and families.
The fire on Saturday did not threaten only a film location, but a complex still used for educational and welfare activities. FDNY investigators are trying to establish the cause of the stake. At the moment there was no known cause of the fire.
L’articolo A fire in Staten Island has touched the church of the Padrino proviene da IlNewyorkese.
