Europe

Notre Dame appears structurally sound after fire, as investigators look for cause

ByThe New York Times
Smoke around the altar inside the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris, Monday night, Apr 15, 2019. The cathedral remains structurally sound after a monstrous fire roared through it Monday night. But the conflagration that destroyed the wood-and-lead roof and lacy spire also left three “holes” in the sweeping vaulted ceiling, officials said after an inspection on Tuesday. The New York Times
Smoke around the altar inside the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris, Monday night, Apr 15, 2019. The cathedral remains structurally sound after a monstrous fire roared through it Monday night. But the conflagration that destroyed the wood-and-lead roof and lacy spire also left three “holes” in the sweeping vaulted ceiling, officials said after an inspection on Tuesday. The New York Times
The Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Sep 19, 2017. The cathedral was scarred by an extensive fire on April 15, 2019, that collapsed part of its delicate spire. The New York Times

The cathedral appeared to be structurally sound, officials said, after an inspection. With the fire extinguished, they now began what the Paris prosecutor, Rémy Heitz, told journalists would be “a long and complex investigation,” though for now he said they were considering the disaster an accident.

“Nothing at this stage suggests a voluntary act,” he said.

The Paris prosecutor’s office said Tuesday evening that investigators had questioned about 30 witnesses. These included workers from the companies involved in the restoration of the cathedral not long before the fire broke out, and staff at Notre Dame in charge of security.

The first fire alarm Monday was set off at 6:20 pm, and checks were carried out but no fire was found, Heitz said.

A second alarm went off at 6:43 pm, he said, and fire was discovered in the wooden framework of the attic, ancient beams beneath the lead roof known as the “forest.”

The Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Sep 19, 2017. The cathedral was scarred by an extensive fire on April 15, 2019, that collapsed part of its delicate spire. The New York Times

The Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Sep 19, 2017. The cathedral was scarred by an extensive fire on April 15, 2019, that collapsed part of its delicate spire. The New York Times

As investigators faced the difficult task of determining a cause in the apparent absence of evidence, destroyed by the roaring flames, officials, citizens and visitors continued to congregate on the banks of the Seine River to contemplate the mutilated monument, an unequalled jewel of Gothic architecture.

Frédéric Létoffé, co-president of a group of French companies that specialise in work on older buildings and monuments, said Notre Dame had fire detectors that functioned continuously and was equipped with dry risers — empty pipes that firefighters can externally connect to a pressurised water source.

But he said that the cathedral — like many others in France — did not have automatic sprinklers in the wooden framework of the roof, and that its attic space was not compartmentalised with fire-breaking walls, which could have prevented a blaze from spreading.

“It’s exposed to the sky — it’s an absolute tragedy, beyond anything we could have imagined,” said Stephen Bern, who has served as an adviser on France’s monuments to President Emmanuel Macron

© 2019 New York Times News Service

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