The Roof of Notre-Dame: the 2019 Fire and its Aftermath

In the second of our summer series of Second Tuesday Talks, Andrew Arrol (Arrol Architects) will talk about the roof of Notre-Dame, which was destroyed during a devastating fire on 15 April 2019. Andrew, who was able to visit the cathedral nearly twenty years ago, following storm damage to the pinnacles, will provide an overview of the historic interior of the roof and the steeple over the crossing. In the summer of 2019, Andrew took the opportunity to revisit Notre-Dame, while in Paris researching stone cutting technology for York Minster. He will use the photographs taken during his visit to outline the damage caused by the fire, and the work which was being undertaken to stabilise the building while he was there. Finally, Andrew will discuss some of the proposals made for the reinstatement of the roof, providing a starting point for a question session on the ethics and practicalities of responding to the extensive losses and damage caused by the fire.

About the Speaker

Andrew Arrol RIBA AABC, is the Managing Director and Principal Architect at Arrol Architects. Andrew has dedicated his career to historic building repair and conservation. He has worked on numerous projects for scheduled monuments, Grade I and Grade II* listed buildings, as well as buildings of many different periods, styles and constructions methods. Andrew is particularly experienced in the conservation of medieval masonry structures, and has served on numerous fabric advisory committees and commissions, as well as acting as Cathedral Architect for Chester Cathedral. Since 2005, Andrew has served as Surveyor to the Fabric of York Minster. In this role, from which he will retire later this year, he oversaw the large-scale repair and conservation of the Minster’s east end, as well as the major reorganisation of visitor and worshipper facilities. Andrew is an active member of many professional associations and societies that promote and develop best practice in conservation.