How would Buddhists respond to someone harming the temple? If a Buddhist noticed someone trying to severely harm their temple, for example trying to start a fire, how would one expect them to respond?

I could imagine a range of responses from completely ignoring it and continuing about their meditation to compassionately talking with the person to getting themselves and bystanders to safety and planning to rebuild later to carrying the person out of the temple. I know spitting on the statue of Buddha is an example used in teachings but I am wondering about scenarios of lasting harm on the facilities that would make them unusable.

Are there any instructive historical examples where something like this happened?
This is highly subjective, but practically speaking, If you go to a Buddhist country and try to engage in vandalism, the chances are that the people nearby will beat the living daylights out of you until a monk interferes and calms them down. After that you will be arrested by the police.

It would be a big mistake to think that the average lay Buddhist is meek or timid.