Another Alberta historic Catholic church has gone up in flames..This time it was the Blessed Virgin Roman Catholic Church in Fort Chipewyan, 223 km north of Fort McMurray, which went up in flames about 2:30 a.m. Thursday morning.."Local fire responded and with the assistance of RCMP, and Alberta Forestry, were able to contain the fire without spread to nearby buildings and the community itself. Unfortunately, the church itself is a total loss," said the RCMP is a release.."Investigators have been assigned to this incident and RCMP will be working in collaboration with a fire investigator to determine the cause.".The church roots date back to 1849, a mission was established in Fort Chipewyan, which is the oldest European-Canadian community in the province..The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Roman Catholic Church was built in 1909..It was designated as a provincial historic resource in 1998..If you have any information on the fire you are asked to contact the Fort Chipewyan RCMP at 780-697-3665 or your local police..If you wish to remain anonymous, you can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), online at www.P3Tips.com or by using the “P3 Tips” app available through the Apple App or Google Play Store..Churches across Western Canadian have been torched by the dozens of the last year after reports emerged about the possibility of more than 200 childrens' grave at a former residential school in Kamloops..Other churches have also been vandalized.
