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Suspected Cause Of Fire At Notre Dame Cathedral Revealed By Police Officials

Suspected Cause Of Fire At Notre Dame Cathedral Revealed By Police Officials

Officials said they believed an electrical short circuit may be behind the fire at the Notre Dame Cathedral

Deborah Cicurel

Deborah Cicurel

Investigators believe that an electrical short circuit may be behind the horrifying fire at the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.

An official told the Associated Press that they still do not believe anything criminal caused the fire, and that at this stage, they are investigating whether an electrical short-circuit could be behind the blaze.

Smoke rises from Notre Dame cathedral.
PA

Speaking anonymously, the official said that the investigators do not have permission to work within the cathedral to search in the rubble for safety reasons.

The cathedral is still being consolidated with wooden planks to support some fragile parts of the wall, according to the source.

Smoke is seen around the alter inside Notre Dame cathedral.
PA

While there were two companies renovating the cathedral at the time of the fire, sources have confirmed that neither of the companies had workers on site when the blaze began.

The blaze through the 850-year-old building raged on for nine hours before it was finally extinguished thanks to the efforts of around 500 firefighters.

The spire collapsed and the roof was severely damaged but thankfully firefighters were able to save priceless artifacts and relics from the blaze.

French president Emmanuel Macron said the country would rebuild the priceless structure.

"We will rebuild Notre Dame even more beautifully and I want it to be completed in five years; we can do it," he said.

"It is up to us to change this disaster into an opportunity to come together, having deeply reflected on what we have been and what we have to be and become better than we are. It is up to us to find the thread of our national project."

Experts inspect the damaged Notre Dame cathedral after the fire in Paris.
PA

So far, well-wishers have pledged over a billion euros to rebuild the cathedral. These donations include €200 million from French billionaire Bernard Arnault and €100 million from Francois Henri Pinault, head of the Kering luxury group and the husband of Salma Hayek.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Life News