KIRUNA, Sweden – E be like say Church dey do road trip, but no be ordinary road trip o! The Kiruna Church, wey don dey stand for over 100 years, dey relocate like person wey no wan miss flight, no be small. Dem go carry am go new site wey dey 5km (3 miles) far from where e dey now, all because ground dey sink like heavy stone for that side. This na serious matter o!
For the past two days, the church no gree move faster than snail speed – maximum speed na 500m per hour. E long like story, but wetin you go expect na when dem dey carry one big building wey get weight of 672 tonnes! As dem dey carry am, people dey gather like mumu, some dey even come with camera to snap the church wey don turn moving vehicle.
The place wey dem dey move the church from dey face serious wahala because of iron ore mining wey don dey change ground structure. People like project manager, Stefan Holmblad Johansson, bin talk say, ‘No room for error jare! Or else, na wah!’ I mean, no be every day person wan move church intact instead of break am down. Dem dey use steel beams carry the church and lots of heavy machinery to ensure say everything dey alright.
Meanwhile, as dem dey move this wooden ogbonge church, na so thoughts of memories dey come back for mind of locals – everywhere na joy and small bitter tears because dem go miss the old site wey carry plenty history. Vicar Lena Tjärnberg even talk say, ‘This church na soul of Kiruna, but wey we dey move am now, everybody get mixed feelings o!’ (Na true matter be that).
But wetin we go talk about the beauty of this church? E don collect awards as Sweden’s most beautiful pre-1950 building jare! Designed by architect Gustaf Wickman, the church mix Scandinavian Romantic style with small touches from Sami culture. Even if dem carry am go new ground, people still dey plan to turn am into community center and sweet meeting place again.
As per the relocation money, no wahala! The mining company, LKAB, wey dey do the operation don promise to cover everything wey dey reach the sum of 10 billion Swedish krona (approx. $1 billion; I no fit even carry half of this amount on my head!).
The church move na part of bigger plan to shift Kiruna town center because of mining hazards wey don dey push residents out like say dem be unwanted guests. Many other buildings don already move, but this one na most precious like gold. Watin dis relocation mean? E no be just physical, but spiritual and emotional matter wey go live long after dem don move finish.
So, as Kiruna Church dey cruise to new location, locals and visitors dey follow the journey live, wey dem dey call ‘slow TV,’ meaning everybody go watch the whole transformation slowly like romance movie wey don dey long. Who no go wan see church wey dey waka like celebrity? Only time go tell how the new chapter for Kiruna go unfold, but one thing sure – Kiruna Church will always be part of the hearts of people for this region, no be small!
