Breaking: Notre Dame cathedral in Paris on fire

Terribly sad day for Paris, and the world.

Trying to keep some positive perspective on this. Cathedrals like Notre Dame are typically made out of stone, which can usually survive a fire pretty well. Notre Dame had been undergoing a very extensive renovation, which is - sadly - often a recipe for disaster. Welding torches and thousand-year-old wood ceilings are a bad mix.

Things to be concerned about: Despite the stone fabric of a cathedral, they tend to be packed with priceless artefacts that don't react well to fire. Tapestries, pews, organ pipes. stained glass, rood screens, etc. etc. There is a priceless, irreplaceable treasure trove of religious and cultural artefacts that will probably be destroyed.

On the flip side.... 21st century man can work miracles of restoration if it sets its mind and energies to it. I was recently in Dresden, marvelling at the Frauenkirche's restoration from the utter devastation it suffered from Allied bombs during WWII.

People of Paris: We are with you. We will help you rebuild.
 
It amazes me how a building that lasted centuries can be so fragile and vulnerable. I mean, I know how fire and wood go great together, but it looks like it didn't take much to get it started. This probably started out as a small electrical problem or something - which could have been a result of the renovation work - and consumed the building in an hour or so. Very sad in any case.

I wish I visited Paris and the cathedral before, somehow I've never been there even though it's not really that far from where I live. Can't imagine what it's like for the people living there who where used to seeing it every day.
 
arkitect said:
That is a terribly sad picture.

Once the fire gets in among the dry roof timbers the roof is pretty much gone… and then when it caves in, the rest is at risk.
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Agree completely with you.

Heart-breaking, what a beautiful and iconic building.

I have visited the cathedral on a number of occasions, - an awesome and atmospheric and incredible place - and was fortunate enough to have been allowed to climb one of the towers around thirty years ago to take some photos from that vantage point.

French friends of mine live on the Île de la Citié; I sincerely hope that they are able to recover from this terrifying and heart-breaking devastation.
 
I do wonder how much of the stone structure will survive. While it will never be the same. I hope it gets rebuilt.
 
Scepticalscribe said:
French friends of mine live on the Île de la Citié; I sincerely hope that they are able to recover from this terrifying and heart-breaking devastation.
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I didn't realize how many people live so close by. The news said they are being evacuated from the island. Maybe that's only on the eastern side. I sure hope no people have been hurt.

Firefighters don't seem to be getting control over the fire. They can't do water drops from the air in such a populated area, and standard firefighting equipment can't get them high enough to spray water downward. Update: The weight of dropped water would collapse the structure.

Although it seems too soon for this, news outlets are already asking how this will affect tourism. I wouldn't be surprised if, in the months to come, tourists still flock to see what remains of the building, and eventually to see it being restored, even before entry to the building is allowed again.
 
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Doctor Q said:
I didn't realize how many people live so close by. The news said they are being evacuated from the island. Maybe that's only on the eastern side. I sure hope no people have been hurt.

Firefighters don't seem to be getting control over the fire. They can't do water drops from the air in such a populated area, and standard firefighting equipment can't get them high enough to spray water downward.

Although it seems too soon for this, news outlets are already asking how this will affect tourism. I wouldn't be surprised if, in the months to come, tourists still flock to see what remains of the building, and eventually to see it being restored, even before entry to the building is allowed again.
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The area looks so over built that they can't even get close enough. Looking at the live streams there seem to be people in the buildings next to the church. I can't imagine them allowing to build so close around here.

Air drops would destroy what is left.
 
Worth pointing out the cathedral is owned by the French state although exclusively used by the Catholic church. Obviously the church could afford to rebuilt it but would guess they'll beg for others to raise the money.
 
Good and bad news just now. One of the 400 firefighters has been seriously injured. But it now appears that the structure will not be a total loss. And some items, including paintings, were successfully removed.
 
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Devastated by this. It's also Holy Week for us Catholics. I visited it twice, and I never ever even thought that I would've outlasted it.

D4OHeEIWAAA46Pi.jpg
 
The roof is pretty much gone, but the the walls , structure and most of the inside is now safe ( so far)
It could have been even more dramatic, as there are many habitations and buildings just a few meters from the lateral side. They had to evacuate the entire island though to be sure in the risk of a collapse.
 
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After centuries of candles burning in there, all the interior surfaces must have been saturated with paraffin.
 
yaxomoxay said:
Devastated by this. It's also Holy Week for us Catholics. I visited it twice, and I never ever even thought that I would've outlasted it.

D4OHeEIWAAA46Pi.jpg
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Horrifying image; the cathedral itself is a glorious example of Gothic architecture and part of the beating heart of French cultural identity.

I'm delighted that at least the walls, structure, towers and some of the interior appears to have been saved.
 
Scepticalscribe said:
Horrifying image; the cathedral itself is a glorious example of Gothic architecture and part of the beating heart of French cultural identity.

I'm delighted that at least the walls, structure, towers and some of the interior appears to have been saved.
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Hopefully some artwork (and for us Catholics, the relics) are safe too.
 
velocityg4 said:
I do wonder how much of the stone structure will survive. While it will never be the same. I hope it gets rebuilt.
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Notre Dame was known to be disintegrating, and was undergoing extensive renovations at the time. That's why the scaffolding was there. I don't think the structure will survive, unfortunately.
 
yaxomoxay said:
Hopefully some artwork (and for us Catholics, the relics) are safe too.
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One of the photographs I saw showed the two islands (Île de la Citié and St-Louis) in complete darkness, with the Seine lit up by the flames; obviously, everyone has been evacuated.

I sent my friends an email expressing horror, sympathy and sorrow; I remember them taking me to the cathedral when I first visited Paris to stay with them as a teenager.

Shocking and very upsetting; a sublime symbol of European culture.
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jerwin said:
...... I don't think the structure will survive, unfortunately.
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The Parisian authorities - who, three hours ago seem to have thought along similar lines - now believe that the structure - walls, towers, and structure - can be saved.
 
Fast-foward a decade or two and this is what might happen:

A historic building burned today. Within hours, using millions of crowdsourced photos and videos, the former visible structure was modeled, inside and out. As soon as the debris is cleared, the building will be 3D printed and look exactly as it did before.​

Then again, we'd need 3D printers that use stone and brick and wood as their raw materials. Otherwise, people might not consider it to be a proper restoration.

In the meantime, let's hope the Notre Dame restoration that's sure to come will be faster than the 1844 restoration, which took 20 years.
 
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