Municipal flags lowered in Saint John to remember the 215 children whose remains were found at the site of a former residential school in British Columbia. (Image: City of Saint John/Twitter)
New Brunswick is commemorating the 215 children whose remains were found at the site of a former residential school in British Columbia.
Premier Blaine Higgs said he has asked that flags at the legislature and all provincial buildings be lowered to half-mast.
“There are no words to describe the sadness and shock felt over the discovery of the remains of 215 Indigenous children at the site of the former Kamloops residential school,” Higgs said in a series of tweets Monday morning.
“We grieve with the First Nations over the tragic loss of these young lives.”
Flags have also been lowered at all federal buildings to commemorate the deaths of the children.
The children were students at the school in Kamloops which was once the largest in Canada’s residential school system.
Their remains were discovered in a mass grave last week by using ground-penetrating radar.
It is believed the deaths are undocumented but work is being done to uncover identities.
Municipalities throughout the region have also lowered their municipal flags to honour the victims.
In Saint John, mayor-elect Donna Reardon called the discovery of the unmarked mass grave a tragedy of national significance.
Meanwhile, a memorial vigil is being organized for King’s Square in Saint John on Sunday.
A national Indian Residential School Crisis Line has been set up to provide support for former residential school students.
The toll-free line can be accessed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by calling 1-866-925-4419.
