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Notre-Dame fire
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Notre-Dame fire
On 15 April 2019, at 18:18 CEST, a structural fire broke out in the roof space of Notre-Dame de Paris, a medieval Catholic cathedral in Paris, France, that is part of the "Paris, Banks of the Seine" UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The fire, which investigators believe was started by a cigarette or an electrical short circuit, destroyed the cathedral's wooden spire (flèche) and most of the wooden roof and severely damaged the cathedral's upper walls. The vaulted stone ceiling largely contained the burning roof as it collapsed, preventing extensive damage to the interior. Many works of art and religious relics were moved to safety, but others suffered smoke damage, and some of the exterior art was damaged or destroyed. The cathedral's altar, two pipe organs, and three 13th-century rose windows suffered little or no damage. Three emergency workers were injured. The fire contaminated the site and nearby areas of Paris with toxic dust and lead.
The cathedral was then closed immediately. Two days after the blaze, President of France Emmanuel Macron set a five-year deadline to restore it. Notre-Dame did not hold a Christmas Mass in 2019 for the first time since 1803. By September 2021, donors had contributed over €840 million to the rebuilding effort. After three years of reconstruction, the cathedral reopened on 7 December 2024.
The construction of the Catholic cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris ("Our Lady of Paris") began in the 12th century. Its walls and interior vaulted ceiling are of stone. Its roof and flèche (spire) were of wood—much of it 13th-century oak—sheathed in lead to exclude water. The spire was rebuilt several times, including in the 19th century.
The cathedral's stonework had been severely eroded by years of weather and pollution, and the spire had extensively rotted because fissures in its lead sheathing were admitting water. The roof timbers were dry, spongy and powdery with age. In 2014, the Ministry of Culture estimated needed renovations at €150 million, and in 2016 the Archdiocese of Paris launched an appeal to raise €100 million over the following five to ten years. At the time of the fire, the spire was undergoing restoration and scaffolding was being erected over the transept.
Extensive attention had been given to the risk of fire at the cathedral. The Paris Fire Brigade drilled regularly to prepare for emergencies there, including on-site exercises in 2018; a firefighter was posted to the cathedral each day; and fire wardens checked conditions beneath the roof three times daily.
Fire broke out in the attic beneath the cathedral's roof at 18:18. At 18:20 the fire alarm sounded and guards evacuated the cathedral; a guard was sent to investigate, but to the wrong location—the attic of the adjoining sacristy—where he found no fire. About fifteen minutes later the error was discovered, but by the time guards had climbed the three hundred steps to the cathedral attic the fire was well advanced. The alarm system was not designed to automatically notify the fire brigade, which was summoned at 18:51 after the guards had returned. Firefighters arrived within ten minutes.
Police evacuated the Île de la Cité, the island in the river Seine where the cathedral is located. White smoke was seen rising from the roof, which turned black before flames appeared from the spire, then turned yellow.
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Notre-Dame fire
On 15 April 2019, at 18:18 CEST, a structural fire broke out in the roof space of Notre-Dame de Paris, a medieval Catholic cathedral in Paris, France, that is part of the "Paris, Banks of the Seine" UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The fire, which investigators believe was started by a cigarette or an electrical short circuit, destroyed the cathedral's wooden spire (flèche) and most of the wooden roof and severely damaged the cathedral's upper walls. The vaulted stone ceiling largely contained the burning roof as it collapsed, preventing extensive damage to the interior. Many works of art and religious relics were moved to safety, but others suffered smoke damage, and some of the exterior art was damaged or destroyed. The cathedral's altar, two pipe organs, and three 13th-century rose windows suffered little or no damage. Three emergency workers were injured. The fire contaminated the site and nearby areas of Paris with toxic dust and lead.
The cathedral was then closed immediately. Two days after the blaze, President of France Emmanuel Macron set a five-year deadline to restore it. Notre-Dame did not hold a Christmas Mass in 2019 for the first time since 1803. By September 2021, donors had contributed over €840 million to the rebuilding effort. After three years of reconstruction, the cathedral reopened on 7 December 2024.
The construction of the Catholic cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris ("Our Lady of Paris") began in the 12th century. Its walls and interior vaulted ceiling are of stone. Its roof and flèche (spire) were of wood—much of it 13th-century oak—sheathed in lead to exclude water. The spire was rebuilt several times, including in the 19th century.
The cathedral's stonework had been severely eroded by years of weather and pollution, and the spire had extensively rotted because fissures in its lead sheathing were admitting water. The roof timbers were dry, spongy and powdery with age. In 2014, the Ministry of Culture estimated needed renovations at €150 million, and in 2016 the Archdiocese of Paris launched an appeal to raise €100 million over the following five to ten years. At the time of the fire, the spire was undergoing restoration and scaffolding was being erected over the transept.
Extensive attention had been given to the risk of fire at the cathedral. The Paris Fire Brigade drilled regularly to prepare for emergencies there, including on-site exercises in 2018; a firefighter was posted to the cathedral each day; and fire wardens checked conditions beneath the roof three times daily.
Fire broke out in the attic beneath the cathedral's roof at 18:18. At 18:20 the fire alarm sounded and guards evacuated the cathedral; a guard was sent to investigate, but to the wrong location—the attic of the adjoining sacristy—where he found no fire. About fifteen minutes later the error was discovered, but by the time guards had climbed the three hundred steps to the cathedral attic the fire was well advanced. The alarm system was not designed to automatically notify the fire brigade, which was summoned at 18:51 after the guards had returned. Firefighters arrived within ten minutes.
Police evacuated the Île de la Cité, the island in the river Seine where the cathedral is located. White smoke was seen rising from the roof, which turned black before flames appeared from the spire, then turned yellow.
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