An assistant attorney general was killed during a scaffolding collapse in Cobble Hill Thursday night.

Fire officials say a lightning strike likely hit the steeple of the Christ Church on Clinton and Kane streets, causing part of the three-story building and a scaffolding to come crashing down where 61-year-old Richard Schwartz was walking.

The area surrounding the church is closed off until the Department of Buildings (DOB) can assess the structure and determine it is safe. To watch Chopper 12 footage over the scaffolding collapse, click on iO Extra on Ch. 612.