Just recently, on Monday April 15th to be specific, a huge inferno engulfed the Notre-Dame Cathedral in France. The Cathedral, which has major civil and national significance, symbolizes the city of Paris. It is possible the cause of the fire may have something to do with the renovations taking place. The fire began from the roof, where there exists no sprinklers or firewalls as electrical wiring wasn’t allowed to preserve the cathedral’s authenticity.

   Approximately 400 firefighters were needed to extinguish the fire and this took almost nine hours. Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, vowed to restore the 850 year old cathedral. “The worst has been avoided, but the battle isn’t fully won yet,” the president said. Artifacts and other valuable items kept in the cathedral were saved. The whole country was united as all over social media people posted and the city of Paris was in mourning. On twitter U.S president Donald Trump commented that it was “horrible to watch” the fire.

   The full restoration will take approximately 10 to 15 years. There was also a threat of rain and architects fear that this could result in further damages. A solution, however has been reached as an emergency tarpaulin will be erected. There are also plans to build a temporary wooden cathedral in order to continue with prayers.

   Also, there were stories that there existed two beehives on the roof that survived and were merely intoxicated by the smoke. In order to restore the cathedral, the scaffolding must first be ejected and fallen wood will be removed too. However, some of the stone and artworks might be reusable but that would have to be decided. A survey will take place to ensure the area is safe before people can be allowed to go in.

   Interestingly, this is not the first time the building suffered damage as in the 1970’s during the French revolution , the interior was looted by mobs. The place receives almost 13 million visitors each year and the tragedy has been felt not just by France but internationally.“We will make the Cathedral of Notre-Dame even more beautiful. We can do this,” the French president Macron said.