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In reply to the discussion: BREAKING ON MSNBC: Notre Dame Cathederal in Paris is on fire. [View all]Snellius
(6,881 posts)75. That is true BUT
Last edited Mon Apr 15, 2019, 06:00 PM - Edit history (1)
but on Gothic cathedrals most of the weight of the building is not structurally carried by the walls but by the flying buttresses on the outside. Still any building that old and such an ambitious structure build at that early a stage of architecture will have serious masonry problems. Many European cathedrals after WWII were able to be restored. Cologne was bombed 16 times. But not as old as Notre Dame, much of which however was extensively rebuilt in the 19th C.
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Watching the video, there's scaffolding around the tallest steeple. I wonder if they were doing...
George II
Apr 2019
#23
Yep, the roofers did it with a torch and walked away, likely w/o even calling the Fire Depatment.
machoneman
Apr 2019
#27
This is heartbreaking! I remember the fire Windsor Castle. This looks MUCH worse
Siwsan
Apr 2019
#32
I am scheduled to be in Paris for the first time in June...heartbreaking loss...(n/t)
Moostache
Apr 2019
#55
I just realized that my trip was during this week. I was staying with a host family
tymorial
Apr 2019
#60
Let's see... dumping a large mass of water suddenly onto a burning, ancient roof...
OKIsItJustMe
Apr 2019
#63
The entire Ile de la Cite is closed off now. Residents can shelter at Whitefriars
Recursion
Apr 2019
#58
The spire just went down. Hopefully this isn't terrorist related but the scene reminds me of the WTC
George II
Apr 2019
#43
Dumping tons of water on an already weakened structure would cause it to collapse
uppityperson
Apr 2019
#88
church's structure had been saved after firefighters managed to stop the fire spreading to the north
OKIsItJustMe
Apr 2019
#89
Here's a clearer image of the inside of Notre Dame cathedral, one of the first since the fire.
OKIsItJustMe
Apr 2019
#92