Workers begin dismantling melted scaffolding on Notre Dame after Covid-19 easing

Notre Dame, part of a UNESCO world heritage site on the banks of the River Seine lost its gothic spire, roof and many precious artefacts in the fire, which was watched by huge crowds A huge fire swept through the roof of the famed Notre-Dame Cathedral in central Paris on April 15, 2019, sending flames and huge clouds of grey smoke billowing into the sky. The flames and smoke plumed from the spire and roof of the gothic cathedral, visited by millions of people a year. A spokesman for the cathedral told AFP that the wooden structure supporting the roof was being gutted by the blaze. AFP/File

A lift carried workers into the middle of the tangled mass of some 40,000 tubes for a last evaluation, before others will be lowered by ropes from a crane overhead to start sawing apart the scaffolding this week, officials said.

Notre Dame fire, one year on

The operation is one of the riskiest undertaken during the restoration work, since the 40 tonnes (88,000 pounds) of fused metal must be removed without further damaging the limestone walls supporting the gothic vaults.

The scaffolding had been installed for a renovation of the steeple that was being carried out when the blaze erupted on the evening of April 15, 2019.

"In an operation like this, it's like preparing a rocket launch, with final 'check-up' before the rope-access workers," said Christophe Rousselot, director general of the Fondation Notre-Dame, the charity that is overseeing the collection of donations to the cathedral.

Millions of people around the world watched as the blaze tore through the church's roof, causing its steeple to collapse and sending billowing fumes containing toxic molten lead into the air.

Firefighters worked throughout the night to keep Notre-Dame from collapsing completely, though officials have said the structure remains at risk.