A group of French Republican politicians have sounded a “state of emergency” on 75 Paris Churches, each of which face a potential Notre Dame level catastrophic event if left without urgent remedial work, a statement after the world-famous Medieval cathedral suffered a catastrophic fire in April.
At the time of the fire, Notre Dame was undergoing urgent repair work to the roof, part of an underfunded programme which had been denied money by the French government, despite the state owning the building.
Now conservative [Republican party] politicians have sounded a warning over the state of health of 75 other churches in Paris, warning that each could face a similar fate without intervention and repair work.
As well as calling for a significant investment of money — the report calls for 33 million Euros a year to be spent on preventing the major historical buildings being destroyed — the lawmakers also look to improving education in relevant subjects.
The report recognises the need for a new generation of builders and craftsmen with traditional skills able to maintain some of the vast religious buildings that became the property of the French state in 1905.