Bells of French Notre Dame Rang For the First Time Since the 2019 Fire

In Paris, for the first time in five years, after the 2019 fire, the bells of Notre Dame Cathedral rang, France24 and The New York Times report.

The sounds of the eight bronze bells of the north bell tower rang for 5 minutes. They started ringing at 9:30 GMT (11:30 Kyiv time).

On 7 December, the Cathedral will be reopened after a long restoration. 

‘The first test was a success,’ said Alexandre Goujon, who was responsible for reinstalling the bells.

‘This is a wonderful, important and symbolic step,’ said Philippe Jost, head of the NGO involved in the restoration of the cathedral.

‘It is 8 November, and Notre Dame is saying to us: ‘I am here, waiting for you,’’ said Guillaume Normand, vice-principal of the cathedral.

There are 21 bells in Notre Dame Cathedral. Soon, they will be joined by three new ones, including the one that rang during the Olympic Games in Paris.

The heaviest bell, called Gabriel, weighs more than four tonnes, and the lightest, Jean-Marie, is 800 kilograms.

On 7 and 8 December, celebrations are planned to mark the opening of the cathedral.

As you know, the fire in Notre Dame Cathedral occurred on 15 April 2019. The fire broke out in the attic. Firefighters rescued Notre Dame half an hour before it was about to be destroyed.

They managed to save the main stone structure of the Gothic building, including two towers, but the spire and roof completely burned down and collapsed.

A possible cause of the fire was a short circuit in the building, which was undergoing renovation. However, the exact cause has not yet been established.