Even the best possible outcome of the Notre Dame Cathedral fire will be utterly devastating.
Firefighters are currently responding to a raging fire at the iconic church, and former St. Louis firefighter Gregg Favre on Twitter observed that based on his experience, the best case scenario for the main part of the cathedral may look something like the damage caused by the 2016 fire at New York's Cathedral of St. Sava. Favre notes that a variety of factors, including wind conditions and responder access, could result in more or less damage, though.
Favre also explained that a variety of issues make fighting the fire difficult, including that it's "nearly impossible" to control ventilation in churches. Since the cathedral was undergoing renovations, he also expressed concern over construction materials that can explode and warned that the cathedral's walls could collapse if they're weakened by the fire.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Another issue, according to a spokesperson for the Paris mayor's office, is that firefighters are "having a lot of trouble getting at the fire because of all the construction," The Daily Beast reports. The Associated Press reports firefighters are currently fighting it both inside and outside of the cathedral, and a Notre Dame spokesperson previously said the entire frame is burning.
-
Israel: Losing the American publicFeature A recent poll finds American support for Israel's military action in Gaza has fallen from 50% to 32%
-
Unmaking AmericansFeature Trump is threatening to revoke the citizenship of foreign-born Americans. Could he do that?
-
EPA: A bonfire of climate change regulationsFeature The Environmental Protection Agency wants to roll back its 'endangerment finding,' a ruling that lets the agency regulate carbon emissions
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstancesSpeed Read
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2Speed Read
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governorSpeed Read
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditionsSpeed Read
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billionSpeed Read
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on recordSpeed Read
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homesSpeed Read
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creatureSpeed Read
