Notre Dame basilica faced ‘chain-reaction collapse’
Minister credits firefighters with rapid, yet careful, response
Notre Dame Cathedral would have burned to the ground in a “chain-reaction collapse” had firefighters not moved as rapidly as they did to battle the blaze racing through the beloved landmark building, a French government official said Wednesday.
The firefighters acted aggressively to protect wooden supports in the twin medieval bell towers from the flames, averting a bigger catastrophe, said José Vaz de Matos, a fire expert with France’s Culture Ministry.
“If the fire reached this wooden structure, the bell tower would have been lost,” de Matos said. “From the moment we lose the war of the bell towers, we lose the cathedral, because it’s a chain-reaction collapse.”
Monday’s fire destroyed most of the lead roof of the 950-yearold architectural treasure and caused its spire, which was added in the 19th century, to collapse.
An initial fire alert was sounded at 6:20 p.m., as a mass was underway in the cathedral, but no fire was found. The second alert was sounded at 6:43 p.m., and the blaze was discovered on the roof. No one was killed in the fire, after firefighters and church officials speedily evacuated those inside.
Firefighters acted bravely and as fast as they could to save the cathedral, said senior fire official Philippe Demay, denying that there was any delay in their response.
Despite extensive damage, many of the cathedral’s treasures were saved, including Notre Dame’s famous rose windows, although they are not out of danger.
Paris Firefighters’ spokesperson Lt.-Col. Gabriel Plus said that even though they are “in good condition … there is a risk for the gables that are no longer supported by the frame.”
Firefighters removed statues inside the gables above the rose windows to protect them, and took care not to spray water too hard on the delicate stained glass, Plus said.
Scaffolding erected for a renovation of the spire and roof that was already underway must be properly removed because of its weight and because it is now “crucially deformed,” he added.
The cathedral is still being monitored closely by firefighters and experts to determine how much damage the structure suffered and what needs to be dismantled to avoid collapse.
French President Emmanuel Macron said the renovations would be completed in time for the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
Experts have said, however, that Macron’s goal is ambitious.
“No less than 15 years … it’s a colossal task,” said Prominent French conservation architect Pierluigi Pericolo, who worked on the restoration of the 19thcentury St-Donatien Basilica, badly damaged in a 2015 blaze in Nantes. He said it could take between two to five years just to check the stability of Notre Dame.