Three years of construction at Notre-Dame-de-Paris: from security to restoration

Published on: 04/15/2022 – 11:31 President Emmanuel Macron has set a milestone of 2024 to return Notre-Dame Cathedral to worship and visitors. France 24 follows the evolution of this “construction site of the century” and takes stock, three years after the devastating fire. Journalist Mélina Huet met those who work on restoration, at the heart of the building and all over France. They are in a race against time, traditional know-how confronting the emergency. Three years ago, images of the Notre-Dame-de-Paris fire were seen around the world. After the stupor, thousands of men and women contributed to securing this historic monument. Architects, scientists, painters, craftsmen… And the site is now preparing to welcome restorers. The mobilization is national. The windchests of the great organ are repaired in Occitania. The largest instrument in France – in terms of register – was spared the flames. But its some 8,000 pipes, as well as its windchests responsible for distributing the air, had to be dismantled one by one and decontaminated before reaching the restoration workshops. Windchests of the great organ of Notre-Dame-de-Paris. © Mélina Huet, France 24 In the Pays de la Loire, century-old oaks were felled and then sawn to form the future stool of the spire, at the top of Notre-Dame cathedral. This work by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, architect of the restoration of the cathedral in the 19th century, was destroyed by the flames. The spire will be rebuilt identically and therefore needs these extraordinary trees, which once peaked at forty meters high. Lead and salt, the invisible enemies The presence of lead is one of the major challenges of this project. More than four hundred tons of this metal melted on April 15, 2019 and flew away in the form of toxic dust. Dust removal from the cathedral is underway and should be completed before the summer of 2022. At the same time, a desalination project had to be implemented. For three years, the humidity caused by the firefighters’ water, then by bad weather, has caused salts to migrate to the surface of the stones. As the vaults threaten to crumble, a team has deployed to put this invisible enemy out of harm’s way. Desalination site at Notre-Dame-de-Paris. © Georges Yazbeck, France 24 Salt, lead, bad weather, the Covid-19 pandemic but also exceptional archaeological discoveries: these setbacks cannot interfere with the reopening target set for 2024, for the Summer Olympics in Paris.> > Also see the previous section: “Notre-Dame de Paris, two years after the fire”The Notre-Dame CNRS / Ministry of Culture scientific project is being developed in collaboration with the public establishment responsible for the restoration of Notre-Dame-de-Paris cathedral.