The French general appointed to oversee the reconstruction of Notre Dame Cathedral has said the iconic building is still at risk of collapse more than six months into the efforts to restore it.
General Jean-Louis Georgelin said the cathedral is “not saved yet” and has to undergo a delicate operation to remove fused scaffolding around the spire, destroyed by a devastating fire in April last year.
“The cathedral is still in a state of peril,” Georgelin told the French broadcaster CNews. “There is an extremely important step ahead, which is to remove the scaffolding.”
Photo: AP
Georgelin, who has described the conservation and restoration of the cathedral as “an immense challenge,” added that the condition of the ceiling vaults was not fully known and he could not guarantee they “won’t fall apart.”
However, he said initial observations on the current state of the 12th-century edifice were “reassuring,” adding: “We feel quite confident.”
The cathedral’s rector, Monseigneur Patrick Chauvet, said two weeks ago the cathedral was so fragile there was a “50 percent chance” it might not be saved if the scaffolding fell on stone vaults weakened by the inferno.
“It will be out of danger when we take out the remaining scaffolding,” Chauvet said. “Today we can say there is maybe a 50 percent chance that it will be saved. There is also a 50 percent chance of the scaffolding falling on the three vaults, so as you can see the building is still very fragile.”
Georgelin denied reports that the wooden roof structure would be rebuilt exactly the same, from wood.
“There will be a study and all possible options will be looked at,” Georgelin said.
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