Chris Proffitt/Eyewitness News
Lawrence - Fire destroyed a large building at a Boy Scouts camp in Indianapolis, sending flames high into the predawn sky that could be seen from a nearby highway.
Firefighters battled the massive blaze at Camp Belzer in Lawrence early Wednesday morning. The Lawrence fire chief says the call came in just before 6:00 am Wednesday. As many as 60 firefighters responded.
Camp Belzer is a 130-acre boy scout camp that dates to 1918 in a wooded area near Fort Harrison State Park. Central Indiana Boys Scouts called the nearly $2 million, seven-year-old building The Center For Volunteer Training.
"It's a big loss for our 100th anniversary celebration of scouting to have that big piece of the puzzle for this district and council to have lost," said Larry Stockton, Cub Scout master.
Someone nearby spotted the fire and alerted the ranger who lives on the property, a sprawling compound used by the 34,000 Boy Scouts and 12,000 volunteers of the Crossroads Of America Scouting Council.
"I feel disappointed because like my dad said, it was the place you usually went to in the morning and usually experienced the most and it was one of the most important buildings," said Canyon Stockton, Boy Scout.
With only one hydrant near the property, firefighters had to truck in water to fight the fire swept by strong winds. The fire was under control in around 90 minutes - too late to save the building. The blaze got so large drivers on I-465 reported seeing the flames.
"It's devastating. It's the hub of innumerable activities and events. We plan to move forward. Don't know exactly what those steps are," said Ted Klick, Crossroads of America Council.
But with the structure insured, Scout officials pledge to rebuild an important part of their organization.
Camp representatives say there were no functions in that building Tuesday night and are now working with firefighters to try and figure out what sparked the blaze.
No injuries were reported.
Camp history
Camp Belzer has a long history of serving Indianapolis area Cub and Boy Scouts.
During the summer, the camp serves as the flagship Cub Scout Day Camp. The building that burned is the Center for Volunteer training, which has a large center room that could hold up to 250 people, along with a full kitchen and four smaller rooms.
Francis Oliver Belzer founded the camp in 1910 as Camp Chank-Tun-Un-Gi. It became Camp Belzer in 1946 when Belzer took over as the first Indianapolis Scout Executive.
Sen. Richard Lugar was once a staff member at the camp.
