by Lacey Pfalz
Last updated: 12:06 PM ET, Mon April 5, 2021
The rector of Notre Dame believes that the cathedral could take fifteen or twenty years before it's fully restored.
According to the Associated Press, Rector Patrick Chauvet, after participating in the Good Friday ceremonies held at the church of Saint-Germain l'Auxerrois, mentioned that the iconic Paris cathedral could remain a work in progress for fifteen to twenty years.
The medieval Paris landmark welcomed a staggering twenty million tourists each year before April 15, 2019, when it was engulfed in flames for days due to an electrical short, destroying much of the cathedral, including the iconic spire.
While French President Emmanuel Macron has set the restoration deadline to 2024, when the city is to host the Summer Olympics, many believe it to be too great a project to finish in a few years' time.
The blaze also spread toxic lead from the cathedral's roof onto nearby buildings and areas, which makes the pre-restoration clean-up efforts more complicated.
However, progress is still being made. Earlier this March, 1,000 trees across France were chosen to make the cathedral's transept and iconic spire. According to another Associated Press article, eight of these specially selected trees come from the historic Forest of Berce, which once belonged to the kings of France; four of these oaks have been alive for over 200 years.
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