Furniture buried in the mud, collapsing ceilings and a whole life gone: for the dozens of households who were able to return to the scene of the major fire at the Good Shepherd monastery on Saturday, the shock is great.
What there is to know
- Smoke was seen around 4:30 p.m. Thursday coming from the roof of the historic Chapelle du Bon-Pasteur;
- The fire was declared extinguished in the morning of Saturday;
- A structural specialist inspected the building on Saturday;
- The evacuees were able to return to the scene to collect their personal belongings. The 250-year-old harpsichord and other musical instruments are also recovered in the middle of the day;
- No one is missing or injured in the fire;
- The monastery is home to low-cost housing for the elderly, and a housing cooperative. All of these residents had to be evacuated;
- The historic Chapel of Bon-Pasteur is recognized as one of Montreal’s prestigious performance halls. It is also a member of the network of cultural centers of the City of Montreal;
- The heritage complex also serves as a “pioneer” in the fight for heritage preservation in Montreal, said Dinu Bumbaru, spokesperson for Heritage Montreal.
Solidarity is palpable on the outskirts of the Bon-Pasteur monastery on Saturday, while the tenants wait to be able to collect their personal belongings, accompanied by firefighters and police officers.
They are dozens, young people, adults, elders. For many, decades of community life are disappearing. A shock difficult to absorb.
“It’s very difficult,” says Caroline Hétu, her voice muffled. I have lived here for 22 years. I arrived as a young student, I founded my family. It’s my living environment, my home, my community. Now my life is in four garbage bags. »
The family has just gone to see the damage. “We have nothing left, it’s worse than I expected,” adds Mme Hetu. By his side, his teenage daughter, Charlotte, wipes her tears. “It’s my house, it’s difficult when you lose a home,” she explains.
PHOTO JOSIE DESMARAIS, THE PRESS
A structural inspection specialist will need to determine if the Good Shepherd Monastery building is safe enough for firefighters and evacuees to enter.
The Sourire à la vie cooperative has existed for 37 years. Some of the founders still lived there.
Patrice Masse, a retiree who lived in the cooperative, came out of his house with his computer, his passport, his breathing apparatus, and some plant cuttings.
“I was expecting it, but it hits,” he says. The important thing is to be alive, but it hurts. There are 2 or 3 inches of silt on the ground, it looks like the ceilings are going to collapse. Everything is scattered, ”he testifies.
I have nothing left, I have lost everything.
Patrice Masse, resident
The instruments of the Chapel brought out
A little further on rue Sherbrooke Est, the valuable instruments housed in the Chapelle du Bon-Pasteur — a prestigious concert hall in Montreal — were also brought out.
Protected by a black cover, the 1772 Kirkman harpsichord was transported by Transport Gagnier employees in the middle of the day on Saturday. According to our information, the cover would be waterproof and the harpsichord over 250 years old was not in an area affected by the flames.
At the end of the afternoon, the harpsichord specialist to whom it was entrusted, Yves Beaupré, assured on Facebook that the harpsichord could be saved. “The 1772 Kirchman harpsichord from the Chapelle du Bon Pasteur is still good for another 250 years. He was rescued from the “waters” and is in very good condition under the circumstances,” he wrote.
A Fazioli concert piano was also at the scene during the tragedy, along with several other musical instruments. They were also on their way out of the building Saturday noon.
42 hours of work to extinguish the fire
After 42 hours of work, the Montreal Fire Department (SIM) finally declared the fire over Saturday morning, in the heritage complex located on Sherbrooke Street East, near Saint-Laurent Boulevard.
During the early hours of the day, around 20 firefighters were still hard at work to ensure that the debris did not catch fire again.
At the height of the fire on Thursday, 150 firefighters were battling the flames.
PHOTO JOSIE DESMARAIS, THE PRESS
Firefighters at work Saturday morning
A structural inspection specialist arrived on site Saturday morning. His role was to determine if the building is safe enough for firefighters and evacuees to enter, which was allowed by mid-morning.
Sherbrooke Street East is still closed between Saint-Laurent Boulevard and Hôtel-de-Ville Avenue.
Air quality, which had deteriorated significantly on Friday to the point of needing an Environment Canada alert, was assessed at 18 on Saturday. This is a “good” level, according to Mme Barbeau-Charlebois.