Rouen Cathedral saved from fire: flames tamed, building undamaged

Rouen Cathedral has been rescued from the flames: after a fire broke out yesterday on the 19th-century spire of the house of worship, famous for being painted by Claude Monet in a celebrated series of works with which the father of Impressionism studied atmospheric effects at various times of day, the flames have been tamed. Thus, at around 5 p.m., firefighters in the Normandy city were able to declare the fire extinguished . Thus, a new Notre Dame was averted: the Rouen Cathedral (also dedicated to Notre Dame, moreover) did not suffer major damage, and the interior was saved. Also arriving at the site during the day was Culture Minister Rachida Dati, who was delighted that the church was not damaged inside. In any case, twenty-eight works of art in the church were removed as a precaution to avoid the risk of deterioration in case of contact with the water used to extinguish the fire.

The fire had been reported, the prefecture of the department of Seine-Maritime reports, by workers working on the spire (the cathedral is in fact undergoing some renovations), who tried to fight the spread of the fire before the firefighters intervened. The workers, six in all, were evacuated and rescued (three of them inhaled fumes, firefighters announced).

The spire, the tallest in France (inaugurated in 1876 after the 16th-century spire was rebuilt due to a collapse, reaches 96 meters in height, an elevation that also allowed it to be, from 1876 to 1880, the tallest building in the world) was not damaged, because it was some plastic elements of the construction site that caught fire. After the fire was contained, firefighters checked all hot spots before it was officially declared extinguished. An investigation is currently underway to determine the cause of the fire: the assumption is that it was accidental.

Image: the Cathedral of Rouen. Photo: Philippe Roudaut

Rouen Cathedral saved from fire: flames tamed, building undamaged

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