A historic church in Montreal has been lost after a major fire erupted at the building.
The century-old Saint-Paul Catholic Church in the Sud-Ouest borough burned to the ground early Monday morning, with plumes of smoke still billowing from the rubble.
A five-alarm fire was reported just after 1:30 a.m., with flames lighting up the sky.
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According to Montreal fire crews, no one was injured during the incident but due to difficulty containing the blaze, a neighbouring retirement home was evacuated as flames also spread to the building.
The Canadian Red Cross says about 150 residents from the area were taken into care. Among those evacuated were 73 people from the retirement home, which had been converted from the church’s former rectory.
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The church has been vacant for years, but was still considered a staple of the community since it was built in 1910. It is part of a heritage site comprised of a few buildings in the area.
The extent of the damage to the church is being assessed by fire officials. An investigation is also underway into the cause of the fire and where it started.
— With a file from Global News’ Brayden Jagger Haines and The Canadian Press
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