Shock moment: Fire at the spire of the Gothic cathedral in French Rouen
The fire at the top of the Vierungsturm, a 19th century spire, had caused large smoke clouds. The cause of the fire is still unknown, wrote Mayor Nicolas Mayer-Rossignol in an online service X. The tower is currently being renovated and was equipped and covered with a white plastic sheet.
Images on online services showed that a part of this sheet had caught fire. "Mainly plastic material from the construction site was affected," said Fire Chief Stéphane Gouezec to the news agency AFP.
According to the prefecture, the six workers on site had raised the alarm and attempted to extinguish the fire. Three of them, who were working on a platform at a height of 120 meters, reportedly first used fire extinguishers and inhaled smoke in the process.
The fire department reportedly managed to extinguish the fire in the late afternoon on Thursday. Approximately 70 firefighters and 40 fire trucks were involved in the firefighting efforts, according to Fire Chief Gouezec.
The cathedral was evacuated, the prefecture announced. The police cordoned off the area and asked the population not to hinder the firefighting efforts. Twenty-eight works of art were carefully removed from the spire to prevent damage from firefighting water. Prefect Jean-Benoît Albertini stated that potential water damage was being checked. The Culture Ministry ruled out a collapse risk.
The Cathedral of Rouen is one of the masterpieces of Gothic architecture and was frequently painted by Claude Monet. The 151 meter high tower spire is made of cast iron. It replaced a wooden predecessor model that was struck by lightning in 1822. Until the completion of the Cologne Cathedral in 1880, the Cathedral of Rouen was the tallest building in the world. Renovation work began in 2017. During this time, fireproof partitions were installed in the roof structure.
During the fire at Notre-Dame in Paris in 2019, the spire from the 19th century was engulfed in flames and collapsed into the church. The renovation work is almost complete, and the church is expected to reopen in December.
- The fire department was notified about the incident at Peak Tower in Rouen due to the alarm raised by the workers, as reported by AFP.
- Rachida Dati, a well-known French politician, expressed her concern about the fire at Peak Tower, echoing the shock felt by many.
- During the shock moment of the fire, the plastic sheet covering Peak Tower caught fire, causing further complications in extinguishing the blaze.
- The Cathedral Notre-Dame in Rouen, a contemporaneous landmark like the one in Paris that underwent renovations, was a spectator to this unexpected event at Peak Tower.
- Nicolas Mayer-Rossignol, the Mayor of Rouen, was closely monitoring the situation at Peak Tower, assuring the safety of the city and its people.
- The AFP reported a significant event: a big fire at the Peak Tower in Rouen, leading to widespread concern and attention.
