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Post by htmb on Mar 13, 2021 22:44:17 GMT
This is a brief look inside from Feb 16, 2021. It’s not much, but I happened across it just this afternoon.
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Post by mossie on Mar 14, 2021 7:55:02 GMT
Thanks. Still so sad to see
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Post by kerouac2 on Mar 14, 2021 9:09:14 GMT
Meanwhile, they have been selecting oak trees for the fabrication of new beams for the roof. At one time, there was a debate about using steel beams, but tradition won out.
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 14, 2021 11:18:00 GMT
Tomorrow will be the 2nd anniversary of the fire, and restoration efforts seem to be on schedule. Notre Dame will probably be able to reopen as hoped in 2024, but obviously all of the work will not be complete at that time.
Last night there was a documentary on television here by Jules and Gédéon Naudet, the two brothers who had already made the best documentary about the WTC attack and also the multiple episode documentary about the terrorist attacks in Paris in November 2013 (which I already recommended to look for on Netflix). Their latest work about Notre Dame is astounding, too. I thought I had seen just about all of the footage taken of the fire, but there was much more this time, including inside the cathedral and the north tower which was almost destroyed (and which would have brought down the south tower within 30 minutes if it had fallen). I cannot imagine that people (firefighters I suppose) had the courage to document so much with their iPhones while risking their lives.
The Naudet brothers say they became total firefighter groupies on September 11, 2001 when they were in New York by accident and rushed to the site with their cameras. They followed the firemen into one of the towers before it collapsed, and the firemen saved their lives by getting them out in time, so they feel that they owe them an eternal debt.
They were not present for the Notre Dame fire, but they found totally gripping footage from new angles, and they were able to interview lots of firefighters who relived the trauma as they told it. Anyway, I found the programme extraordinary. ABC (the American one, not the Australian one) is a coproducer, so I'm sure that it will be shown on American television, too.
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Post by patricklondon on Apr 14, 2021 15:45:28 GMT
Sounds like one that showed on the BBC some time ago. I hadn't realised how close they came to losing the bells, and just how impressive (and how young, to my eyes) the firefighters were. And they still had to give everything an extra clean and polish for a scheduled inspection the next morning! My blog | My photos | My video clips | My Librivox recordings"too literate to be spam"
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 14, 2021 15:50:31 GMT
Yes, that must be the same documentary, because that was one of the key details -- getting back from the fire and giving all of their equipment the obligatory cleaning until dawn.
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 15, 2021 18:01:34 GMT
I took the bus to Notre Dame this morning. Had to get off in the middle of the bridge because the streets were taped off because of the visit of the president and the mayor. I saw all of the camera crews waiting and all of the passersby being interviewed by the news channels, but I avoided them. I didn't stay long enough to see our leaders, but there were plenty of other people there to do it for me.
Watching the news on television later, I have to admit that I felt a bit sorry for Mayor Hidalgo. With the president there to make all of his statements, she was only there to stand in the background in silence. The media tell us constantly that Hidalgo and Macron detest each other. I don't know if it is true, but it is certain that they are political rivals -- it is almost certain that Hidalgo will be a presidential candidate next year against Macron.
The problem for Hidalgo, though, is probably a narrow view of her own importance. We are a significant majority supporting her as mayor (re-elected brilliantly last year), but most of the country is not as indulgent. The fact that she is a Parisian, an immigrant and a very tough woman do not play in her favour in most of the country.
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Post by lugg on Apr 15, 2021 19:19:08 GMT
Yes, that must be the same documentary, because that was one of the key details -- getting back from the fire and giving all of their equipment the obligatory cleaning until dawn. I remember seeing that too K2 and Patrick. Watching the news on television later, I have to admit that I felt a bit sorry for Mayor Hidalgo. With the president there to make all of his statements, she was only there to stand in the background in silence. The media tell us constantly that Hidalgo and Macron detest each other. I don't know if it is true, but it is certain that they are political rivals -- it is almost certain that Hidalgo will be a presidential candidate next year against Macron. Will be interesting to see how it all pans out
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 15, 2021 19:28:37 GMT
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 25, 2022 6:46:57 GMT
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Post by htmb on Apr 25, 2022 7:50:46 GMT
Fascinating video, and I’m guessing it only begins to touch in the work being carried out to restore the cathedral. It seems a bit of a boon to the various crafts persons working on the restoration.
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Post by Kimby on Apr 25, 2022 11:33:32 GMT
Really sad about the ancient oak trees that have to die for authenticity of wooden ceiling beams. Steel would have been non-flammable, too.
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Post by lagatta on Apr 25, 2022 14:17:25 GMT
I feel the same about the oaks. Notre Dame is extraordinary, but ancient oak forests are also an important legacy.
And admit to sadness about Hidalgo's paltry presidential score; she has accomplished much towards making Paris more liveable and sustainable, and many other major cities have much to learn from these from these accomplishments.
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 25, 2022 14:50:07 GMT
In Reims, they used concrete beams to replace the oak during reconstruction of Notre Dame de Reims. That would have been fine with me for Notre Dame de Paris, but I understand the decision to keep everything traditional, especially since so much money was donated, since it also keeps traditional craftsmanship alive. I don't mourn the oaks because they were grown for that reason in the national forest domain. It is just hard for us fragile modern mortals to understand that in olden times, people thought two or three hundred years ahead of time for the destiny of their woodlots. And the video points out that this allows younger trees to grow. If these mature oak trees live too long, they rot from the inside or are destroyed by storms when they become weaker.
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Post by mickthecactus on Apr 25, 2022 15:15:43 GMT
A very good point.
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Post by Kimby on Apr 25, 2022 18:38:46 GMT
However, climate changes in the hundreds of years since the first oaks were cut for timbers have resulted in fast-growing wood that is less dense and less strong than earlier forests’ climate regime.
At least that’s true in the US.
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 9, 2023 12:38:40 GMT
So, here is Easter 2023. The reopening is still scheduled for December 8, 2024. There are supposed to be two major events this month -- they will start putting the windows back in and reconstruction of the spire will begin. That should make people to at least be able to see something.
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Post by whatagain on Apr 9, 2023 13:29:31 GMT
Thanks for this update. Can't think the fire happened 4 years ago !
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 9, 2023 21:06:57 GMT
This must surely be one of the most amazing works of reconstruction in history.
I realize the bleachers are there simply as observation seating, but it looks as though citizens of Paris are happily gathering for a group portrait in support of that major icon of their city.
Was today the first time the bells have been rung since their new installation? Your video perfectly captures the gravity & happiness of the moment, with the b&w portion reminding us that it's all a part of history.
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Post by Kimby on Apr 10, 2023 2:32:44 GMT
60 Minutes tonight featured the restoration work being done at Notre Dame and they re-aired the heartbreaking footage from the fire. You could hear the crowd’s despairing shrieks when the spire toppled.
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 10, 2023 5:17:24 GMT
Was today the first time the bells have been rung since their new installation? I had no idea, so I looked it up and yes, it was the very first time the bells have rung since the fire. Strange that I happened to be there for that.
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Post by fumobici on Apr 10, 2023 5:23:46 GMT
I half remember seeing bleachers set up in the place in front of the church there once years ago, maybe for an event. Maybe I just imagined it.
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 10, 2023 5:27:50 GMT
No, they've done it from time to time for special events.
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 20, 2023 3:15:04 GMT
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Post by kerouac2 on Aug 20, 2023 3:28:59 GMT
The news was a bit of a shock as are all accidental deaths.
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Post by kerouac2 on Sept 30, 2023 19:21:38 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Sept 30, 2023 19:49:23 GMT
Seeing that monumental amount of construction being done with modern tools such as monster hydraulic lifts and safe, clever prefab scaffolding brings home what an astounding feat it was to build Notre Dame in the first place.
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Post by htmb on Sept 30, 2023 19:52:06 GMT
Kerouac, do you know, is the main part of the spire all one piece?
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Post by kerouac2 on Sept 30, 2023 20:31:04 GMT
No, it is going to be assembled little by little. I already read that some people had a fantasy of it being dropped in place by a helicopter or a crane.
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 1, 2023 5:00:49 GMT
Well, scaffolding at least has been around forever. I was stunned during my first trip to Hong Kong when I saw that they still use scaffolding made out of bamboo to build skyscrapers.
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