‘HORRIFIED BY WHAT WE SEE’
Flames ravage Paris’ beloved medieval landmark; spire collapses, towers saved; France vows to rebuild
Paris — A massive fire engulfed the upper reaches of Paris’ soaring Notre Dame cathedral as it was undergoing renovations Monday, threatening one of the greatest architectural treasures of the Western world as tourists and Parisians looked on aghast from the streets below.
The blaze collapsed the cathedral’s spire and spread to one of its landmark rectangular towers, but Paris fire chief Jean-Claude Gallet said the church’s structure had been saved after firefighters managed to stop the fire spreading to the northern belfry. The 12th-century cathedral is home to incalculable works of art and is one of the world’s most famous tourist attractions, immortalized by Victor Hugo’s 1831 novel “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.”
The exact cause of the blaze was not known, but French media quoted the Paris fire brigade as saying the fire is “potentially linked” to a $6.8 million renovation project on the church’s spire and its 250 tons of lead. The Paris prosecutors’ office ruled out arson and possible terror-related motives, and said it was treating it as an accident.
As the spire fell, the sky lit up orange and flames shot out of the roof behind the nave of the cathedral, among the most visited landmarks in the world. Hundreds of people lined up on bridges around the island that houses the church, watching in shock as acrid smoke rose in plumes. Speaking alongside junior Interior minister Laurent Nunez late Monday, Gallet noted that “two thirds of the roofing has been ravaged.” He said firefighters would keep working overnight to cool down the building.
Late Monday, signs pointed to the fire nearing an end as lights could be seen through the windows moving around the front of the cathedral, apparently investigators inspecting the scene. The city’s mayor, Anne Hidalgo, said the significant collection of art work and holy objects inside the church had been recovered. Remarkably, only one of the about 400 firefighters who battled the blaze was injured, officials said.
The fire came less than a week before Easter amid Holy Week commemorations. As the cathedral burned, Parisians gathered to pray and sing hymns outside the church of Saint Julien Les Pauvres across the river from Notre Dame while the flames lit the sky behind them. Paris Archbishop Michel Aupetit invited priests across France to ring church bells in a call for prayers.
French President Emmanuel Macron was treating the fire as a national emergency, rushing to the scene and straight into meetings at the Paris police headquarters nearby. He pledged to rebuild the church and said he would seek international help to do so.
“The worst has been avoided although the battle is not yet totally won,” the president said, adding that he would launch a national funding campaign today and call on the world’s “greatest talents” to help rebuild the monument.
Built in the 12th and 13th centuries, Notre Dame is the most famous of the Gothic cathedrals of the Middle Ages as well as one of the most beloved structures in the world. Situated on the Ile de la Cite, an island in the Seine river, its architecture is famous for, among other things, its many gargoyles and its iconic flying buttresses.
Among the most celebrated artworks inside are its three stainedglass rose windows, placed high up on the west, north and south faces of the cathedral. Its priceless treasures also include a Catholic relic, the crown of thorns, which is only occasionally displayed, including on Fridays during Lent.
French historian Camille Pascal told BFM broadcast channel the blaze marked “the destruction of invaluable heritage.”
“It’s been 800 years that the Cathedral watches over Paris,” Pascal said. “Happy and unfortunate events for centuries have been marked by the bells of Notre Dame.”
He added: “We can be only horrified by what we see.”
Reactions from around the world came swiftly including from the Vatican, which released a statement expressing shock and sadness for the “terrible fire that has devastated the Cathedral of Notre Dame, symbol of Christianity in France and in the world.”
In Washington, President Donald Trump tweeted: “So horrible to watch the massive fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris” and suggested first responders use “flying water tankers” to put it out.
Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop of New York, said he was praying “to ask the intercession of Notre Dame, our Lady, for the Cathedral at the heart of Paris, and of civilization, now in flames! God preserve this splendid house of prayer, and protect those battling the blaze.”
Paris — Some kneeled, some folded their hands to make silent entreaties. Others sang with their eyes focused on the sky that had gone from blue to yellow and orange, and filled with acrid smoke.
In an impromptu act of togetherness and hope, Parisians and people just visiting France’s charismatic capital came together to pray for Notre Dame as a fire quickly advanced through the cathedral.
The blaze that engulfed Notre Dame brought memories and sorrow to people around the world who had seen or dreamed of seeing the church known for its sculpted gargoyle guards and place in literary history. But emotions might have run highest in the crowd outside another Gothic church, not far from where Notre Dame burned.
In front of the Saint-Juliendes-Pauvres church, a couple hundred people knelt in prayer in the middle of a larger group. More voices joined an unceasing communal hymn sung mostly a cappella, though accompanied at one point by two violins.
“The cathedral is more than walls. It’s a symbol of Catholic France,” said Paris resident Gaetane Schlienger, 18, who tried to climb a tree near the vigil. “But I have a lot of friends who are not Catholic, and for them it also has a huge impact.”
Schlienger said she comes to Notre Dame nearly every week because gazing at it “you feel in security, in peace. It’s magnificent.”
The cathedral also called to Quentin Salardaine, 25, a doctor from Paris, as flames devoured it and colored the sky.
“I think this building just symbolizes Paris, no matter if you’re Catholic or not. I’m not,” Salardaine said. “I’m just here because I couldn’t stay at my place just knowing that this thing is happening and there are people gathering, singing this religious anthem.”
Elsewhere in Paris, hundreds, and then thousands of people lined the banks of the Seine River around the small island on which Notre Dame stands, watching in disbelief and horror.
The flames spread along the roof at the back of the structure. The spire burned and fell.
The fire chief in Paris reported crews were struggled to contain the fire, which progressed into the cathedral’s wooden interior and one of the architecturally distinctive towers. Streams of water from fire hoses whipped across the exterior.
Even after firefighters started getting a handle on the blaze, bits of flame could be seen from the Left Bank still licking above exposed walls where the roof used to be. Lights moving past the huge stained-glass windows at the front of Notre Dame appeared to be guiding investigators doing inspections.
Later, an Associated Press reporter got a glimpse inside the cathedral. The only illumination inside the darkened structure came from a glowing red hole in the soaring ceiling. Hours earlier, the spire had risen from that spot into the Paris skyline. Streams of sparks instead spilled onto the floor where the church choir usually stands.
Outside Saint-Julien-desPauvres, people kept approaching the spontaneous chorus. Blandine Bouret, 68, said she knew the neighborhood well. Her grandfather had a small store on a street in the shadow of Notre Dame. Her father had an engraving boutique nearby.
“It’s terrible, it’s catastrophic. This is the soul of Paris,” Bouret said.