notre-dame attic was known as ‘the forest.’ and it burned like one.

PARIS —
Inside the cathedral of Notre Dame
Dame in Paris, the last Mass of the day was held on Monday in St. week, when the first fire alarm sounded. It was 6:20 p. m.
The heavy wooden doors are planned to close the tourists 25 minutes before the day.
Worshippers, sightseers and staff were brought out and someone went up to check the most vulnerable parts of medieval architecture --
Attic, a grid of ancient wooden beams known as \"forest --
But no fire was found, Paris Prosecutor Remi Haitz said on Tuesday. At 6:43 p. m.
There was another alarm.
When they returned to the attic 23 minutes later, it was clear that they had a major problem: it was on fire.
Soon, most of the roof and high-rise delicate spires were also blown up by a strong breeze.
Exactly how the fire happened is now the subject of an in-depth investigation by the French authorities, which have so far regarded the disaster as an accident.
The cathedral will almost certainly catch fire.
There is still a lot to learn.
But Notre has appeared-
Dame is irreplaceable for the heritage of France, lack of basic fire
The preventive safeguards needed in more modern buildings have been transplanted to other ancient cathedrals elsewhere in Europe.
Some of these elements, such as a firewall or sprinkler system, are absent by choice-
Therefore, do not change the design of the landmark, nor do you introduce wires that are considered to be more risky in wood that supports Notre
Gorgeous lead roof of Dame.
Pierre husio, president of the Paris Historical Society, said: \"Due to the risk, there is a systematic refusal to install any electrical equipment within the\" forest.
\"We all know that the attic is the most vulnerable part.
\"Inevitably, after a disaster, some of these decisions were questioned, and the disaster hurt the gem of a precious Gothic building, A huge wound was left in the center of Paris. “The fire-
Detection systems exist, not fire compartments, \"said Jacques Chanut, president of the French Federation of architecture, referring to structures that are commonly used elsewhere to control fires.
\"This is a typical example of what we have to consider tomorrow.
However, at the beginning of the fire, the fire spread unimpeded in the attic and on the roof and climbed up the wooden structure inside the tip of the tower.
The burning spires stand out over the city like Roman candles until it collapses and hits the cathedral from the ceiling.
As the burning part of the church\'s superstructure falls on the floor of the cathedral, some of the interior furniture is on fire. [
In Indiana, the cathedral fire sparked talk about the University of Notre Dame fire before 140. ]
Firefighters deployed a robot with tanks.
Type the pedal and camera, pull the hose into the cathedral, and align the water to the flame.
Firefighters also use aerial drones to get into hell and view views including thermal imaging.
Firefighters brought irreplaceable works of art, including candle holders, statues, furniture and religious relics, such as linen fabrics associated with St. Louis, which traditionally preserve the crown of thorns worn by Jesus.
The mayor, Anne Hidalgo, described them as handing over the treasures with their hands and handing over a chain of people.
But without fire
There are only so many precautions that firefighters can do in the cathedral.
Jean-said: \"The fire spread rapidly due to lack of fire safety
Michel Leno, former director of the Institute of Science at the University of France, which specializes in supporting historical work.
\"If there are sprinklers everywhere, it may be different, but not. ”Mr.
Visit the Leniaud inside the University of Notre Dame
On Tuesday, Dame said that states that own and maintain the cathedral have fire safety regulations for all buildings, but \"sometimes it is difficult to apply.
Paradoxically, this may be especially true for some of the most precious buildings.
\"People have been hesitating whether to destroy the monument . \"Leniaud said.
One reason the fire swept through the open space under the roof was that there were no obstacles --
Sometimes called a firewall.
Visiting professor of fire investigation at the University of Edinburgh, Jim legate, said the fire was separated until firefighters arrived.
For this reason, he said, there is a legal need for such obstacles in a similar structure in the UK.
This is not to say that firefighters in Paris are unprepared for a potential disaster.
Many of them train regularly in Notre for such emergenciesDame.
It turns out to be crucial to preserve many of its treasures. Google Earth;
Paris fire brigade spokesman Gabriel Plus said Ian Langsdon/EPA via shutterstock of The New York Times \"we will not take action without planning \".
\"We know the cathedral.
So we know what to do when something like that happens, for example, we know that we need to quickly deploy ships on the Seine to pump a lot of water.
Some 500 firefighters responded, and some of them opened the hose and trained them to put out the fire.
About 100 of people concentrate on preserving their religious and cultural treasures. Plus said.
\"Once we realize that the roof will be partially lost, our goal is to stop the fire in both towers to limit damage,\" he said . \".
Laurent nunez, France\'s interior minister, said about 20 firefighters risked their lives to enter the tower to put out the fire, \"which allowed the building to be preserved.
\"15 minutes, half an hour, can happen anyway,\" he said . \".
The danger of a catastrophic fire in the attic Wood is well known.
\"In the cathedral, we have fire monitors,\" said Msgr . \"
Cathedral president Patrick shawett told French radio International on Tuesday.
\"They evaluate three times a day under a wooden roof. ”Notre-Dame had an on-
A spokesman for the cathedral, Andrei Finot, said the firefighters on site posted daily at a command post on the floor of the building, along with a security officer.
If the alarm rings, the firefighters will send the security personnel to the area where the alarm rings.
Paris firefighters held two training exercises in Notre
Last year, Mr. Dame focused on preserving artifacts and works of art. Plus said. Lt. -Col.
José watts de Matos, an official dedicated to the inspection of French national monuments, said, \"many priceless collections have been preserved and kept safely.
But he said \"some of the big items affected by the Fire\" were still inside.
\"At this stage, we can\'t send our team to recover them,\" he said . \".
Most of the damage had been caused by Monday night.
But it wasn\'t until Tuesday morning that the Fire Brigade announced that the fire had been put out, and the firefighters spent a day observing the hot spots and continuing to take valuables out of the building.
Culture minister Frank Rist said on Tuesday that the famous rose window of the cathedral did not appear to have been damaged.
But there are three main holes in the ceiling, one of which is caused by the collapse of the top.
Repair work has started before the fire, most of the buildings are covered with scaffolding and scaffolding is still under construction.
The chief executive of Le Bras Frères, which handles Cathedral scaffolding, Julian Le Bras, told reporters that there were 12 employees working on the site, but when the fire started, no one is there.
Experts say it often involves the repair of combustible chemicals and electric tools, which, like wires, always pose a fire hazard. Mr.
Housieaux, president of the Paris Historical Society, noted that over the past decade, fires related to restoration work have destroyed the town hall in La Rochelle and the St. Lambert Hotel
Louis, an island on the Seine River in Paris. The Notre-
Olivier de Charus, a building engineer and volunteer guide at the cathedral, said the focus of the Dame restoration project was to reinforce the spires and repair some loft beams.
He described the structure under the roof as \"the jewel of the cathedral, a real artwork that many people could not access.
But experts say many of these beams, dating back to the construction of the 12th-century and 13th-century cathedrals, have become kindling --
Dry with age.
Experts will analyze the building to assess the risk of collapse, officials said.
Stabilizing it may include the removal of damaged scaffolding, the installation of new scaffolding, and the taking of measures to protect the mortar between the stones, which may have been weakened by the fire and will not be eroded in the rain. Mr.
Junior Interior Minister nouñez said that while \"The whole structure is in progress\", inspectors have found \"holes\" in the arched ceiling and the mountain wall of the Northern Church \".
As a precaution, five apartment buildings along the northern edge of the cathedral have been evacuated for 48 hours, he said. Mr.
Nearly 50 investigators are trying to find the cause of the fire, Heitz said, but warned that the investigation would be long and complicated.
So far, the assumption is that this is an accident, he said.
\"At this stage, nothing shows that it is voluntary,\" he said . \"