After two-and-a-half years of work to clean up fire debris and then to stabilize the cathedral’s walls and arches, the rebuilding process is ready to start, according to Gen. Jean-Louis Georgelin, named by Pres. Macron to head the task.
Gen. Georgelin told French broadcaster BFM-TV “We’re officially saying that the cathedral is now saved, that it’s solid on its pillars, that its walls are solid.” In the aftermath of the fire, which destroyed the cathedral’s 19th-century spire and its 13th-century maze of wooden roof supports, that was not a foregone conclusion.
The general;s task force, in a statement on Saturday, also said that the work was on track for Notre Dame to re-open in time for the 2024 Paris Olympics, meeting, at least to a degree, Pres. Macron’s assertion at the time of the fire that restoration would be complete by the time the Games start. That’s been walked back to saying it will be open for services by then, not complete.
Also dropped along the way were proposals to build a ‘modern’ spire or redesign large portions of the monument, proposals that proved highly unpopular with the French public. Even the ‘forest’ of oak beams that burned is being replaced, piece by piece with ancient oak rather than steel.
Photo: Notre Dame under scaffolds as work begins (PHeymont/TravelGumbo)
