MONTREAL – It didn’t look like it would come off – less than an hour before the wedding was scheduled to start at St. James United Church in downtown Montreal, workers were feverishly trying to heat the massive building after a crippling water main break. Yet the marriage of Moradak Ma of Laval and Michael McCharles of Red Deer, Alberta went off without a hitch.
“Yeah, you can’t forget this wedding for sure,” McCharles said afterward. “We’re going to find it was awesome.”
The historic church suffered a massive water main break Thursday night that swamped its boiler and knocked out much of its electrical systems.
“There was close to five feet of water within the basement of the church,” said Justin Nadeau, the project manager in charge of getting the church repaired.
But the church issued a statement saying its services would continue, including Saturday afternoon’s wedding. Although the temperatures within the church were frigid — though not as bad as outside — well-wishers came bundled up in parkas. The church staff brought hot chocolate to warm them up.
“Is it cold here today? Colder than I had hoped it would be,” said Rev. Arlen Bonner, of St. James. “I just hope the bride has something on her shoulders.”
Of particular concern was the organ, parts of which are more than a century old. The extreme temperatures and exposure to moisture can rupture the pipes. But the organ emerged largely unscathed.
“I’m really pleasantly surprised that a lot of the instrument works quite well,” said Rafael de Castro, the wedding organist.
This is the second time in as many years the church has suffered a disaster. A recent fire also badly damaged it. The wedding appeared to serve as a symbolic event on the church’s calendar in the wake of so much damage.
“I step back in the midst of all the pain and frustration and all of that and try to find those wonderful moments,” Bonner said. “Like the wedding today.”
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