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The discovery of human remains near the Victoria Bridge proves the existence of a cemetery where as many as 6,000 Irish famine victims are buried, say the organizers of a proposed memorial site.

“I think we’ve been proven right,” said Fergus Keyes, a director of the Montreal Irish Memorial Park Foundation, which has been fighting for a decade to create a commemorative site for those who died in 1847-48.

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Archeologists for the Réseau Express Métropolitain discovered the remains of between 12 and 15 people last week on a site near Bridge St. where the future light-rail system is being built.

They were digging in a small area — about 2.3 metres in diameter — where a pillar for the elevated train will be erected, Keyes said.

“In this one small space that the REM is digging in, the fact that they’ve already pulled up somewhere around 15 or more bodies is a pretty good indication how many burials are really under that area,” he said.