OFF LIMITS
Notre Dame will be closed to tourists for SIX YEARS, rector reveals as it emerges 850-year-old cathedral has NO insurance policy
NOTRE Dame cathedral "will be closed for five to six years" as rebuilds from Monday's devastating fire, its rector has said.
The news of its long-term closure comes after emerged that the 850 year-old monument in central Paris had no insurance policy.
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WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR:
- Huge blaze broke out at 850-year-old Notre Dame Cathedral on Monday afternoon
- The structure's 300ft spire collapsed and Gothic roof turned to ash in the ferocious blaze
- 400 firefighters battled the inferno, managing to save the main structure and rescue Jesus' Crown of Thorns
- Authorities have launched a criminal investigation into what caused the blaze
- President Emmanuel Macron said 'We will rebuild' as Paris mourned loss
- Millions have already donated towards restoration, including Salma Hayek's French billionaire husband Francois-Henri Pinault
- Hero firefighters saved Notre Dame in a vital 30-minute battle with the blaze
- Confirmed segments of cathedral are unstable as parts of the support structure is removed
Bishop Patrick Chauvet acknowledged that the famed monument would close down for "five to six years" as he spoke with local business owners two days after a blaze torched the roof of the cathedral and brought down its 300ft spire.
The exact cost of the mammoth restoration project is not yet known but it is expected to be several billion pounds.
And it has emerged the magnificent cathedral, which is stuffed with historic treasures, was not insured, reports .
A French consulate spokesman said: “The French State is self-insured for Notre Dame. It has no insurance.
“It is supposed to cover its own costs.”
It has also been reported there were no fire alarms and sprinklers in the roof space where the blaze began undetected.
This left fire officers just half an hour to save the building from collapsing after the fire rapidly ripped through tinder timbered roof.
A Paris official said today that part of the support structure around rose windows is to be dismantled to prevent further damage following a massive fire.
The Culture Ministry's fire expert, Jose Vaz de Matos, told reporters that part of the triangular structure above the central rose window is to be taken down "to limit the movement" of the stone.
STRUCTURAL WEAKNESS FOUND
Meanwhile Bishop Chauvet also confirmed "a segment of the cathedral has been very weakened" by the devastating fire.
The bishop added it was unclear what the church's 67 employees would be doing in the future.
The island that houses the cathedral has been closed to the public since Monday's fire, and its residents evacuated.
It's literally the nucleus of Paris all distances in France are measured from the esplanade in front of Notre Dame.
And it is also one of the most-visited spots in France, whose economy depends heavily on tourism.
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Patrick Lejeune, president of the Notre Dame neighbourhood merchants association, said the group's 150 employees fear for the future.
He said: "No one is talking about us.
“Bustling streets are now totally closed. I don't have access to my office."
He also expressed concern for the stability of the cathedral and its central rose window.
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Close-up video filmed by organist reveals scale of damage inside fire-ravaged Notre Dame cathedral
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