By Damon Mitchell • Published: 23 Apr 2020 • 17:48
FORMER GLORY: The 850-year-old cathedral
NEXT week work will finally restart on restoring the Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris after the coronavirus lockdown forced a halt to repairing the gothic landmark nearly destroyed by a fire one year ago, announced the heads of the project today.
“I have made sure that the necessary measures and procedures to guarantee that social distancing and protective measures will be in place for workers at the site,” General Jean-Louis Georgelin said in a statement.
The 13th-century monument was nearly destroyed after a devastating blaze just over a year ago that caused its roof and steeple to collapse, and despite the intense cleanup and stabilisation efforts, the fragile structure remains at risk.
Last week, the church rang a lone bell from its southern tower to mark the anniversary of the fire, coinciding with the nightly rounds of applause from windows around the country for health workers on the frontlines of the Covid-19 crisis.
President Emmanuel Macron reiterated plans to fully restore Notre-Dame to its former glory within five years, calling the effort “a symbol of the resilience of our people.”
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