The FBI is being asked to assist in investigating a suspicious fire early Sunday at a Columbia Planned Parenthood.

Columbia police said in a press release they will remain the lead agency on the case and no further information is available at this time on a small fire reported at 4:06 a.m. Sunday at Planned Parenthood's clinic at 711 North Providence Road. The blaze was extinguished by the building sprinkler system.

Planned Parenthood was closed on Monday as staff worked to notify patients of cancellations. Brandon J. Hill, the CEO and Great Plains president of Planned Parenthood said in a press release maintenance crews were working to reopen as soon as possible.

“We are working quickly and efficiently to make repairs and ensure that we can resume providing essential health services to the community as soon as possible,” Hill said. “We are fortunate that no one was at the health center at the time of the incident, and there were no injuries. The building sustained some limited damage, but repairs are underway now and we plan to reopen very soon.”

Hill added staff safety is a high priority and the center is working with law enforcement to determine what happened. The clinic has been the target of regular protests, sometimes with only a handful of people and other times large, for years. The services offered at the clinic include pregnancy testing and counseling and reproductive health services.

“We are working with law enforcement, as the source of the fire is suspicious and the incident is currently under investigation,” he said. “Planned Parenthood Great Plains has a long history serving patients in Columbia, and we remain committed to providing a full range of sexual and reproductive health services in this community.”

The clinic has been fighting to regain its state license to provide abortions since abortions ended in October when a federal judge refused to block a state law requiring admitting privileges at a local hospital for physicians offering the service at the clinic.

Anyone with information about the fire is asked to please contact the Columbia Police Department at 573-874-7652 or Crimestoppers at 573-875-8477 to remain anonymous.