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The Bells of Notre Dame Rang for the First Time Since the Fire During the Opening Ceremony
The historic Paris landmark was nearly destroyed by a fire in April 2019, though the reason why is still up for debate.
The bells rang from the Notre-Dame de Paris at the Olympics Opening Ceremony, a first since the building was nearly destroyed by fire five years ago.
Kicking off the 2024 Summer Games in Paris, the eventful grand opening featured the medieval cathedral as part of a sequence showcasing the City of Light’s magnificent architecture. The gothic structure of vaulted ceilings and gargoyles produced the ringing of the bells, a haunting sound as the 850-year-old landmark remains in repairs, according to NBC News.
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Here's what to know about the fire that ravaged the iconic site:
When did the Notre-Dame burn?
A fire ignited inside the Notre-Dame on April 15, 2019, at around 6:50 p.m., and quickly grew so plumes of smoke could be seen throughout the city. Two police officers and one firefighter were injured as around 400 firefighters worked through the night, finally extinguishing the blaze about nine hours later, according to NBC News.
The damage to the building, however, was extensive.
Thousands of Parisians took to the banks of the Seine, and millions of viewers tuned in from around the world, watching helplessly as one of the most visited sites in the world went up in flames. As reported by The New York Times: “The blaze destroyed the entirety of Notre-Dame’s attic, melted the roof’s lead sheath, and seriously endangered the stability of the stone structure. The spire burned and crashed down, punching giant, jagged holes into the vaults and sending gobs of molten metal and charred beams plummeting below.”
Brokenhearted individuals and companies worldwide donated upward of $1 billion, which surpassed union estimations that the damage would cost about $650 million to repair, per BBC.
French President Emmanuel Macron, soon after the fire, vowed to rebuild, saying it would be “even more beautiful” than before, according to NBC News. He announced a five-year plan to rebuild what was lost.
“I believe profoundly that we will turn this tragedy into a moment to come together, to be reflective of what we were and what we have to be,” he said, in part. “It will come back. To find the threads of our national project, that which made us, which unites us, a human project, passionately French.”
French General Jean-Louis Georgelin, tasked with overseeing the mammoth reconstruction, told The Associated Press that the Notre-Dame was slated to reopen in December 2024.
How did Notre-Dame catch on fire?
The exact cause of the fire has not been conclusively determined, though French officials focused heavily on causes by electrical malfunction or a poorly extinguished cigarette, according to Reuters. Prosecutors agreed the blaze didn’t appear to be an act of arson, as some had feared.
Police reports cited by France 24 revealed that seven cigarette butts were discovered, likely left behind by renovation workers despite a smoking ban in the building.
Authorities homed in on multiple electrical installations near the famed spire, including those controlling some of the bells, according to a 2019 article by The New York Times. Points were previously raised about introducing modern touches to a near-ancient building, including new lighting and the decision to electrify the bells against beams of dry timber.
The ringing of the bells at the Opening Ceremony marks new life for the landmark, with hopes that it will soon reopen better than before.
