Catastrophic fire tears through Notre Dame cathedral in Paris

April 16-- Apr. 16--The iconic Paris landmark Notre Dame cathedral caught on fire Monday, and officials were fearful the inferno would destroy the entire structure.

But a French official and the Paris fire chief said they think the cathedral's landmark rectangular towers have been saved from the fire that caused horrific damage to the rest of the 12th century building.

Junior Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said late Monday that authorities remain "prudent" but are "much more optimistic" than earlier in the night.

Paris fire commander Jean-Claude Gallet said a major accomplishment of hundreds of firefighters was stopping the flames from spreading to the north tower belfry.

Gallet says two-thirds of Notre Dame's roofing "has been ravaged." He says one firefighter was injured.

He says fire crews will keep working overnight to cool down the structure.

Firefighters on April 15, 2019, battled a massive blaze at the French capital's iconic Notre Dame Cathedral.

People in the French capital posted video and Images of billowing smoke pouring from the Catholic cathedral in the middle of the city earlier in the evening including the fall of the cathedral's iconic spire.

A spokesman said the entire wooden frame of the cathedral would likely come down, and that the vault of the edifice could be threatened too.

Paris police said there were no deaths so far and the origin of the fire was unknown. The church is undergoing a $6.8 million renovation project and French media quoted the Paris fire brigade saying the fire is "potentially linked" to the renovation work.

Fire Chief Jean-Claude Gallet said outside the iconic cathedral as his crews battled the blaze from both the exterior and interior: "We are not sure we are capable of stopping the spreading" to Notre Dame's second tower and belfry.

Gallet said: "If it collapses, you can imagine how important the damage will be."

The French Gothic cathedral was constructed between 800 and 900 years ago mostly between 1160 and 1260. It sits on an island in the Seine River called Île de la Cité.

It's home to a vast art collection, but emergency crews were able to salvage the artwork, according to a Notre Dame official.

Free to the public, it's the most visited attraction in Paris with more than 13 million visitors a year, and one of the top 20 most visited attractions in the world.

French President Emmanuel Macron says the fire consuming Notre Dame Cathedral is taking part of all of France's people with it.

Macron tweeted after the blaze broke out in the cathedral's spire on Monday he was sad "to see "a part of us being on fire." He extended "thoughts for all the Catholics and all the French."

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo says firefighters are trying to contain the "terrible fire" and says city officials are in touch with Roman Catholic diocese in Paris.

The Prefecture of Police sent a tweet asking people to avoid the area.

French writer and historian Camille Pascal says a massive fire has caused "the destruction of invaluable heritage" and "we can be only horrified by what we see."

Pascal told French broadcaster BFMTV: "It's been 800 years that the Cathedral watches over Paris" and its bells pealed for both "happy and unfortunate events."

He recalled that Notre Dame's bells sounded a death knell after the November 2015 terror attacks in Paris.

On Thursday, 16 religious statues were removed from the peak for the first time in over a century to be taken for cleaning and therefore escaped the blaze.

Reactions from around the world came swiftly including from the Vatican, which released a statement expressing shock and sadness for the "terrible fire that has devastated the Cathedral of Notre Dame, symbol of Christianity in France and in the world."

In Washington, Trump tweeted: "So horrible to watch the massive fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris" and suggested first responders use "flying water tankers" to put it out.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop of New York, said he was praying "to ask the intercession of Notre Dame, our Lady, for the Cathedral at the heart of Paris, and of civilization, now in flames! God preserve this splendid house of prayer, and protect those battling the blaze."

A group of Americans from Maine had just finished visiting Notre Dame Cathedral and were in a nearby park when they heard it was on fire.

Freeport resident Lucy Soule, 22, said it was "weird" having been in the church right before this happened. "Now you can smell it burning."

Soule and her father, Win Soule, 58, and Libby Heselton, 53, are on a weeklong trip to Paris where they planned to "see all the sights" and had just finished their visit to Notre Dame. They had been in the cathedral at 5:30 p.m., about an hour before the fire.

Win told The Associated Press "Now I feel sorry for the people tomorrow. They won't be able to see it."

He says "it's incredible. I'm not religious, but this is clearly very important to a lot of people."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

A massive fire broke out April 15, 2019, at Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral, one of the most visited landmarks in the world. Police said the fire is possibly linked to a renovation project that was underway at the church's spire.

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