President Macron: The whole of France is grieving.
"Notre Dame is our history, our culture, a part of our spirituality, the place where our great events took place, epidemics, wars, freedom, the epicenter of our lives," Macron told reporters just outside the still-smoking cathedral in Paris.
"Notre Dame Cathedral is burning, and I know the sadness and shock felt by many French people. However, tonight I want to speak with hope," President Macron said as he announced the launch of a fundraising campaign for the cathedral.
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| French President Emmanuel Macron pledged to rebuild Notre Dame Cathedral after a fierce fire broke out and devastated much of the structure on the evening of April 15. |
President Macron said that the whole of France is grieving.
"Like our people, I feel saddened tonight to see this part of our country burning," Macron shared on Twitter.
One firefighter was seriously injured, and that was the only casualty in the fire.
"We believe that the two towers of Notre Dame Cathedral have now been saved. We now believe that the main structure of Notre Dame Cathedral has been preserved for restoration," the head of the Paris fire department, Jean-Claude Gallet, told reporters at the scene.
Mr. Gallet said that the cathedral's interior structures were still at risk of collapse and firefighters would have to work through the night of April 15th into the morning of April 16th to cool the cathedral down.
Parisians and tourists alike were shocked and disbelieving as they watched flames engulf the cathedral on the banks of the Seine River. Tens of thousands of onlookers crowded the bridges over the Seine and along the embankments to watch the blaze.
World leaders also expressed shock and offered condolences to the people of France.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the cathedral is "a symbol of France and European culture."
British Prime Minister Theresa May said her thoughts were with the people of France and the emergency services battling "terrible fires".
The Vatican said the fire at "a Catholic icon in France and around the world" was shocking and saddening, and that the Holy See was praying for the firefighters.
US President Donald Trump also urged French firefighters to "act quickly" and deploy aircraft to extinguish the blaze. However, the French Civil Security Agency stated that they could not do so as it could damage the structure of the cathedral.
