The "King of Kings" statue had stood since 2004 at the evangelical Solid Rock Church along Interstate 75 just north of Cincinnati. The statue was nicknamed Touchdown Jesus by locals. (Joe Shlabotnik / Flickr.com / Creative Commons)
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Updated: Tuesday, 15 Jun 2010, 1:58 PM EDT
Published : Tuesday, 15 Jun 2010, 7:42 AM EDT
MONROE, Ohio (AP) — Police say a six-story-tall statue of Jesus Christ with his arms raised along a southwest Ohio highway has been struck by lightning in a thunderstorm and has burned to the ground.
The "King of Kings" statue had stood since 2004 at the evangelical Solid Rock Church along Interstate 75 in Monroe, just north of Cincinnati.
Monroe police dispatchers say the lightning strike set the statue ablaze late Monday night.
The sculpture showed Jesus from the torso up and was nicknamed Touchdown Jesus because of the way his arms were raised. It was made of plastic foam and fiberglass over a steel frame, which is all that remains.
Police Chief Mark Neu says the fire spread to an amphitheater next to the statue but was confined to the attic area. He says no one was injured.
A video report of the fire was posted to YouTube :
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