On Tuesday April 15th a devastating fire started in the Notre Dame Cathedral. It first started in the attic of the Cathedral and spread, destroying almost all the treasures in the Cathedral including the beautiful ceiling. The fire took 12 hours to put out, the iconic bell towers still stand along with the iconic 18th century organ. Luckily French President Emmanuel Macron vowed to rebuild Paris’ Notre Dame. The Cathedral has already received more than $700 million in pledges. “We will rebuild. All Together,” Macron said. “It’s part of the fate, the destiny of France, and our common protect over the coming years. And I am committed to it.”
Among all of the donations two of the richest people in France have pledged 100 million euros ($113 million). Many other people have also donated money such as Bernard Arnault, chair of LVMH has given 200 million euros. French energy company, Total, also pledged 100 million euros.
Makeup company L’Oreal along with other companies pledged to donate around 200 million Euros, The city of paris has pledged 50 million euros to the restoration.
Rebuilding the Notre Dame Cathedral could be very hard to do and it will never be the same, but you can’t just let something so historical and important to so many people just disappear. Sara Ngo, a Lakewood High School graduate, says that “Rebuilding such a historical could be a very good but bad thing because there are so many damages and it will just never be as amazing and authentic as it used to be. It is a building thats almost over 800 years old, it will never look or feel the same.”Everyone is hoping that the fire was just a big accident, the Paris public prosecutor Remy Heitz told reporters on Tuesday that “We are favoring the theory of an accident.”
Almost 50 people are now working on a probe to see what caused the fire.
The company Le Bras Freres, the company who will be working on fixing up the Cathedral said that they will be cooperating fully with the investigation.
They are currently investigating witnesses and 15 construction workers who were on the site. Firefighters saved over 16 religious statues and most of the artwork on the back of the cathedral.Residents who lived close to the cathedral and all areas around the cathedral were evacuated in case the building collapsed.
