The century old St. Anne Catholic Church was burned down in Listuguj First Nation, Quebec, reports CBC News. On April 27th of this year, the historic St. Anne Catholic Church was burned with resulting significant damage to the bell tower. The structure still stands, however, the inside of it, the bell tower and the roof have been severely damaged.

The fire was in close proximity to a neighbouring elementary school causing it to close down. The Listuguj Mi’gmaq Government website also reports that the Secretariat Headquarters of the Mi’gmawei Mawiomi were damaged, as was the Mawiomi Treatment Centre. The Listuguj Powwow Headquarters were also destroyed.

The Listuguj Chief, Darcy Gray explained to CBC News the significance of the Church, its standing and meaning to the community, and the loss that the community feels from the fire. This is not the first time the Church has been burned down since it was built in 1771. There were four other arson incidents since its construction. Genealogical documents and registers that were stored in the Church have been lost to the fire, as well as artifacts in the adjoining building of the Mi’kmaq First Nations.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.