Notre Dame de Paris

[Beebs52]

On fire. Creepy and sad. Possibly reno related.

[christie1111]

We had 2 fires in controversial buildings near us. They have arrested 2 high school teenagers from my kid's former school.

One was the Shakespeare Theater in Stratford. Always being debated about what should be done with it. The second was a recent renovation to a beach park area and people were not really happy about the fact they were going to start charging for access, etc.

Both fires were known to be suspicious from the start.

Hope this is not the case for such an important building.

[Estonut]

Hope this is not the case for such an important building.

Most likely not. There's tons of scaffolding all around it and construction work in progress. Most likely old electrical, careless use of/faulty tools or careless disposal of cigarettes. It seems it usually is.

[Vandal]

[Duh Mass]

Uhhhhhhh, isn't Notre Dame in South Bend?

[jarnon]

Uhhhhhhh, isn't Notre Dame in South Bend?

Mayor Pete responds:

[tlynn78]

Only one injury and some of its treasures were spared. Blessings among disaster.

[jarnon]

Billionaires and everyday citizens have already pledged €750 million to rebuild Notre Dame. A separate campaign is raising money for the Louisiana churches destroyed by arson.

The chaplain of the Paris pompiers bravely helped rescue irreplaceable artifacts like the crown of thorns. (He also aided first responders at the 2015 nightclub shooting.)

Priest helped rescue treasures from burning Notre Dame

[Estonut]

Billionaires and everyday citizens have already pledged €750 to rebuild Notre Dame.

I'm pretty sure they'll need a bit more than 850 bucks!

[jarnon]

Billionaires and everyday citizens have already pledged €750 to rebuild Notre Dame.

I'm pretty sure they'll need a bit more than 850 bucks!

I’m bad at posting from my cell phone. It’s fixed now.

[Earl the Squirrel]

Uhhhhhhh, isn't Notre Dame in South Bend?

Don't fret. Rest assured that Touchdown Jesus remains standing....

[Estonut]

Billionaires and everyday citizens have already pledged €750 to rebuild Notre Dame.

I'm pretty sure they'll need a bit more than 850 bucks!

I’m bad at posting from my cell phone. It’s fixed now.

I saw a headline that indicated that there are no longer such large trees/timbers in France as required to rebuild in the way of the original.

[SpacemanSpiff]

I saw a headline that indicated that there are no longer such large trees/timbers in France as required to rebuild in the way of the original.

That was the first thing I thought about when them talked about rebuilding the roof. I'm sure someone will come up with a suitable replacement, but it won't quite be the same. (Then again, when you're in there, are you really looking at the timbers?)

[BackInTex]

I saw a headline that indicated that there are no longer such large trees/timbers in France as required to rebuild in the way of the original.

That was the first thing I thought about when them talked about rebuilding the roof. I'm sure someone will come up with a suitable replacement, but it won't quite be the same. (Then again, when you're in there, are you really looking at the timbers?)

New technologies of joining wood with resins allows the creation of beams larger than available timber trees would allow. I don't know about the weight and if the existing walls could support additional weight, if in fact the new beams are heavier.

They could also use steel (or stronger but lighter composite materials) and put veneers over it. At this point it's not original so the fact that modern materials are used (but with the finished product looking like the original) should not be a factor.

[SportsFan68]

Hope this is not the case for such an important building.

Most likely not. There's tons of scaffolding all around it and construction work in progress. Most likely old electrical, careless use of/faulty tools or careless disposal of cigarettes. It seems it usually is.

SteelersFan works for an electrical contractor, and he guaranteed that the insurance company would claim that the electrical company working on the renovation was at fault. He also mentioned careless disposal of not only cigarettes but also painting supplies and discarded rags. He testified in a similar case of many years ago, not a church, but still a valuable historic building in the area. He said that they were singled out not because the building owner's insurance company thought they were actually at fault but because they had the best insurance of the contractors working on the renovation. They were cleared, and life went on.

That cartoon is awesome. Thanks, Vandal.