Texas mosque destroyed in early-morning blaze; cause unknown
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Islamic Center of Victoria (Facebook)
An early-morning fire has destroyed a Texas mosque that had been a target of hatred in the past.
The Victoria Advocate reports that a convenience store clerk spotted smoke and flames billowing from the Islamic Center of Victoria at around 2 a.m. Saturday and called the fire department.
Jeff Cowan, battalion chief for the city's fire department, says firefighters and police officers found the mosque completely consumed in flames when they arrived.
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The blaze was extinguished about four hours later. No injuries have been reported.
A GoFundMe set up to help pay for repairs has already raised over $100,000 in less than 12 hours.
Victoria Fire Marshal Tom Legler has asked for help from state and federal fire investigators to determine what caused the blaze.
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The Islamic Center's president, Shahid Hashmi, wouldn't speculate about whether it was arson, but he says the building was burglarized a week ago. The paper reports that in July 2013, a man admitted to painting "H8," a computer shorthand for "hate," on the outside of the building.
The mosque has a congregation of 100 members. Victoria is about 115 miles southwest of Houston.