Electrical fault causes fire at St Andrew's Anglican Church in Evandale

Tasmania Fire Service has determined the fire was accidental and said it was caused by an electrical fault in the building's wiring.

Reverend John Tongue, the acting rector, said on hearing about the blaze he felt shock and sadness but was thankful that the main church was unaffected and that no one had been hurt.

"The hall is important as well, but it would have been terrible if the church had been damaged," Reverend Tongue said.

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Several members of the church gathered around the hall on Saturday as fire crews put out the blaze.

Gill Waddle, a congregant of over twenty years, said people abandoned their roast dinners in the oven to head to the church.

She said when they got there, the church hall was well and truly alight, with high wind, smoke and sparks emanating from the building.

She said the fire also shut down the power to most of the town for around 30 minutes.

The church hall has been previously used to host a Sunday School as well as community events and is over a century old. It had a kitchen and a piano inside.

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The fire has caused a complete collapse of the building's roof.

Mrs Waddle said it held lots of happy memories for locals.

"There were tears last night, that's for sure," she said.

Rector's warden Grahame Foster said that it was "surreal" to watch the fire, which made him fearful the blaze would reach the main church building.

When he arrived at the scene there was "quite a big glow with a large amount of ignition."

Mr Foster said that he had expected the worst when hearing about the blaze and when he arrived at the scene he was "well prepared".

"To arrive this morning and see the gutted building, it's a sad reflection" he said.

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He said the church hall, which holds deep memories for the community, was a quaint, vibrant building with a timber-lined ceiling, arched windows and had "real character".

"It reminded me of something from Dad's Army," Mr Foster said.

"And to think that it's now been destroyed is a very sad realisation of what isn't there anymore."

While the hall has not been officially dated by heritage experts, the church estimates it dates to 1870.

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Acting Inspector Stuart Greenwood said fire crews worked to extinguish the blaze but the structure was unable to be saved. The damage bill is yet to be determined.

While the main church is unaffected, its electricity has been cut off and will not be in use for Sunday's evening service.

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