At 6:20 PM an alarm went off during the mass, embracing the centuries years of old art pieces, vitrals, catholic symbols and towers. Even with no smoke, the place was evacuated and only at 6:43 PM another alarm sounded, indicating the fire that took over one of the biggest witnesses of french history, which hosted Napoleon’s coronation, was attacked by the people during the french revolution and now is an enormous symbol of its country.
French media quoted that the event is possibly linked to the, at the time, recent renovation work, considering that the fire spread from the area covered by scaffolding to the spire, which ended up falling through the oak beams, some dating to the 13th century, made roof that burned for the next hours and was, fortunately, the only really damaged structure once it was built as another system, meaning it could burn without affecting what’s underneath.
At around 7:10 PM the fire service arrived to put out the fire that ended up lasting more than 12 hours, exactly because of the distance of the flames. They started at about more than 100 feet from the ground, where the firefighters were at first.
Then comes Trump’s (president of the US) tweet “solving” the problem by saying that it would be easier to extinguish the blaze by using “flying water tankers”, but the problem with this idea was: the structure was too fragile, the cathedral was built in the 12th century, the impact of the water on an already damaged place would cause even more destruction.
Most part of the architecture, musical instruments, statues, woodwork and religious relics were rescued, among them is the Crown of Thorns and the Tunic of St Louis, but thankfully many others were saved as well, and at around 11PM donations for restauration were beginning to be asked for, as well as a national appeal for funds by the French Heritage Foundation. Two police officers and one firefighter were injured, but the end of the occurred was, in some way, positive, once there were no deaths and biggest part of the relics were recovered.
Image Source: Pixabay
Macron (French President) declared that “Our history, our literature, the epicentre of our life, the standard by which we measure our distances. It’s so many books, so many paintings. It’s the cathedral of every French person, even those who have never visited it. This history is ours. We will rebuild Notre Dame, because it is what the French people expect, it is what our history deserves, and it is our deep destiny.” The president also promised to restore the cathedral in within five years, but little did everyone know that this would embrace such hard decisions to make.
Notre Dame is historical, it’s a symbol, and to rebuilt it means that part of its 12th century identity would be drained by the modern world. The argument is whether to use today’s architecture and leave its mark, or to preserve history, to what the only answer is to find a balance between the past and the present. Architect Philippe Villeneuve, to whom the renovation oversee was given six years ago, says that the spire has to be exactly reproduced, but the total conservation of the cathedral’s appearance before the fire is not what Macron expects, which would be a creative reconstruction.
The cathedral’s structure that survived has to be adapted, of course, and the future new part of it is going to be already prepared to deal with another possible situation similar to the one that presented itself earlier this year in April. But some claim that the deadline set by Macron is too short, once a proper reconstruction is desired and Frédéric Létoffé a restoration expert, thinks it could take at around “10 to 15 years” to complete the job.