WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Four months after a fire seriously damaged a mosque in west Wichita, rebuilding efforts have begun.
A fire last Halloween caused about $130,000 in damage to the Islamic Association of Mid Kansas mosque. The cause of the fire has not been determined.
Donna Sibaai, a spokeswoman for the mosque, said Wednesday that members of the community raised about $100,000 for the first phase of rebuilding. She says Muslims traditionally don’t take out mortgages on their places of worship, so the reconstruction will be done in phases.
Wichita Fire Capt. Stuart Bevis said federal investigators are still analyzing evidence from the fire.
The Wichita Eagle reports the mosque was the first formal mosque in Kansas when it opened in 1978. There are now three mosques in Wichita.
