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DAVIDSON COUNTY, N.C. — A cross was saved as firefighters from multiple departments battled a devastating blaze that destroyed a local church.

“I can’t say I’ve ever felt anything like it. It’s sheer anguish,” Rachel Davis, daughter of Siloam United Methodist Church Pastor Scott Davis, told WGHP at the scene of the fire Tuesday night.

Firefighters were dispatched to the Siloam United Methodist Church near Denton, North Carolina shortly before 9 p.m. When crews arrived, they found  heavy smoke and flames coming from the building.

Late Tuesday night, firefighters were still putting out hot spots.

Davis said a friend who lives near the church called her and told her it was on fire.

When she got to the church, firefighters told her they managed to save a cross from inside just before a portion of the building collapsed.

“God is very powerful and he saves his symbol to show that anything is possible, even through the fires,” Davis said.

Davis said the congregation has gathered at Siloam United Methodist Church since 1837.

The fire marshal said the church is a total loss.