As large plumes of smoke continued to rise from the Monastère du Bon-Pasteur in downtown Montreal Friday, the future of the nearly two-century-old building and all it held are shrouded in doubt.
Provincial and municipal officials met Friday morning at the site to assess damage to the historic monastery near the corner of Sherbrooke and de Bullion streets. No one has been seriously hurt in the fire that broke out at around 4:30 p.m. Thursday.
“You can see, behind us, it’s still burning,” Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante said just before noon, at a news conference also attended by Quebec Culture Minister Mathieu Lacombe, the MNA for Sainte-Marie–Saint-Jacques