Notre Dame on fire

daveza said:
Can the media not get clarity on which rose windows survived - this one says one maybe more, others say all 3 survived.

All they have to do is walk around the cathedral and open their eyes.
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Edit: See the before and after images in this link: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-47947425

Pretty sure all of the large rose windows are intact, but they may have suffered micro-cracking of the glass from the intense heat:
_106484570_notre_dame_3d_exterior_inf_v5_976-nc.png
 
Yup, I'm pretty sure the 3 older windows survived - and I'm 10,000 miles away...

It's amazing how little was actually destroyed -

The roof is gone, the ceiling has 3 holes in it, the spire is gone.

The stone infrastructure is pretty much intact, the most valuable stained glass windows are intact, the organ is intact, the altar is intact, the bells and bell towers are intact.

Could have been so much worse.
 
So...a billion dollars raised to repair this building.

Seems a waste considering all the other 'real' shite going on in the world where money needs to be channeled.

Oh well - is what it is
 
Just saw now they are going to have a competition for the best new design of replacement spire? Uhm... Why a new design?
 
MEIOT said:
So...a billion dollars raised to repair this building.

Seems a waste considering all the other 'real' shite going on in the world where money needs to be channeled.

Oh well - is what it is
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Whoever donated to the restoration may well already be donating towards the other shite going on.
 
SeRpEnT said:
Just saw now they are going to have a competition for the best new design of replacement spire? Uhm... Why a new design?
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The current spire was designed in the 19th century. It was nowhere near as old as the cathedral itself: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-47959313
The spire destroyed in the blaze was added to the cathedral during a 19th Century restoration project led by French architect Eugene Viollet-le-Duc.

But Mr Philippe questioned "whether we should even recreate the spire as it was conceived by Viollet-le-Duc... or if, as is often the case in the evolution of heritage, we should endow Notre-Dame with a new spire".
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https://twitter.com/x/status/1118191122340302850
Meanwhile, a copper statue of a cockerel - a symbol of France - that topped the spire has been recovered from the rubble "battered but apparently restorable", the culture ministry said. The cockerel contains holy relics, but it is not yet clear if these are still intact.
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daveza said:
Anyone know when the roof was built ?

Is it the original roof ?
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According to Wikipedia, the roof was rebuilt after a lightning strike in 1161 AD, so there never was as original roof...

Wow, there's a Wikipedia page about the fire!? Comes up higher in the search list than the cathedral itself: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notre-Dame_de_Paris_fire

All your questions answered in great detail...
Renovation works often cause fires, and it is suspected that the Notre-Dame fire may have been caused by such work, which required blowtorch use. Repairs to the lead roof required welding lead sheets which rested on dry, well-seasoned timber, much of it porous or powdery with age. This is a particularly risky process for historic buildings.
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Sounds like the firefighters did their best:
The Paris Fire Brigade had drilled regularly in preparation for any fire at the cathedral, including two training exercises held on the site last year. They also cooperated in the routine thrice-daily fire watch and the alarm system. They therefore knew the building and the difficulties of fighting a fire in it well.

The fire was primarily fought from the inside, in line with common French fire-fighting practice. Attacking the fire from the outside risked damaging the interior by deflecting flames and hot gases (at temperatures up to 800 °C) inwards. Twenty firefighters climbed inside the two towers. Deluge guns from ground-based vehicles were carefully used to douse the fire while avoiding further damage to the building. Following the plans the fire department made for such an emergency, boats were rapidly deployed on the Seine river to pump the water.

The possibility of aerial firefighting was discounted, as the weight of the water and the intensity of the drop at low altitude could have weakened the cathedral's structure. In addition, the limestone used in the construction of the cathedral could have cracked in the heat, especially if abruptly chilled by being doused with water.
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