The promised donations for the restoration of Notre-Dame have reached one billion euros

Paris/Prague - Basic information about the fire that significantly damaged the Paris cathedral Notre-Dame a month ago, on April 15:

- The Notre-Dame cathedral caught fire on the evening of April 15. The cathedral's fire alarm sounded for the first time at 6:20 PM, but the staff member on duty did not notice any fire. According to current reports, this could have happened because, due to a computer error, the alarm reported the wrong sector. The alarm sounded again at 6:43 PM, and flames were already visible at the level of the roof. The first fire brigades arrived on the scene within ten minutes.

- The fire was brought under control after 12 hours, with 600 firefighters involved in the battle. During the intervention, two police officers and one firefighter were injured.

- The fire damaged the roof, the framework, and the spire built in the 19th century, known as the sanctus. Additionally, a portion of the vault collapsed. Most of the artistic and liturgical items were successfully rescued.

- Investigators consider an electrical short circuit to be a likely cause of the fire. Workers who have been conducting restoration work on the central spire of the building used electric lights and an elevator. According to the construction company's statements, the workers adhered to strict safety measures. Investigators have not completely ruled out the possibility that the fire was caused by a human, but the media do not consider it very likely. According to BFM TV, unauthorized individuals often accessed the scaffolding used by the workers.

- After the fire, there was a significant wave of solidarity around the world, and several fundraising campaigns arose to assist the burned cathedral. The value of promised donations for the reconstruction of Notre-Dame reached nearly one billion euros (25.7 billion CZK) according to some estimates, while the French government stated the amount as 750 million euros. According to a professional association of economists working in construction, the costs of repairing the cathedral should not exceed 600 million euros.

- For example, the Arnault family and its LVMH group announced they would donate 226 million euros, while 200 million was promised by the family of L'Oréal cosmetics heiress Françoise Bettencourt Meyers.

- Several fundraising campaigns were also launched in the Czech Republic. At a charity concert held at Rudolfinum on April 23 for the restoration of the cathedral, nearly 400,000 CZK was raised. The concert was part of a collection announced by the National Technical Museum with the support of the Ministry of Culture, Prague City Hall, and Charles University. The Czech Philharmonic (ČF) also joined in.

- Shortly after the fire, the French government announced it wanted an international architectural competition to decide the future appearance of the cathedral. President Emmanuel Macron stated he would like the cathedral to be restored within five years. French lawmakers approved a draft legal framework for the five-year reconstruction of the cathedral after a long debate. The regulation addresses primarily the management of financial donations for the restoration of the cathedral. However, it has drawn criticism from experts and the opposition for a section that allows the government to bypass urban planning, ecological, and heritage preservation rules or public procurement regulations if necessary. The Senate is set to discuss the bill on May 27. The Summer Olympics will take place in Paris in 2024. However, experts estimate the reconstruction period to be ten to twenty years.

- According to a French association of craftsmen and manufacturers that manages apprenticeship training, the reconstruction may be complicated by a shortage of craftsmen. Prague Castle has offered to provide assistance through its restoration workshops and studios, as mentioned in a letter from President Miloš Zeman to Macron.

- The cathedral is currently covered with a protective tarp. By summer, the current temporary tarp is expected to be replaced with a new one, which will feature a photo of the original roof according to Le Monde.

- The Notre-Dame cathedral, also known as the Cathedral of Our Lady, is one of the symbols of Paris and one of the most beautiful examples of Gothic architecture in the world. Its cornerstone was laid on the Île de la Cité in the Seine River in the spring of 1163 during a visit by Pope Alexander III to the city, although the exact date is unknown. Construction had already begun several years prior, and the building of the sanctuary, initiated by the Parisian bishop Maurice de Sully, took almost two centuries, until 1345. Notre-Dame, made famous by Victor Hugo in his novel "The Hunchback of Notre-Dame," is among the most frequently visited tourist sites in Paris. According to available data, over 35,000 people visited it each day.