Risk management planning is necessary for "old" historic buildings

When I first got involved in Main Street commercial district revitalization work c. 2002, I remember a couple of communities that experienced catastrophic fires, others tornadoes, etc.

Smoke and flames rise during a fire at the Notre Dame Cathedral in central Paris on April 15, 2019. (Hubert Hitier/AFP)

Sadly, as most everyone knows by now the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris experienced a catastrophic fire on Monday, losing most of its roof and spire, with severe interior damage.

But it could have been worse.  Most of the historic artifacts could have been destroyed by the fire, which is what happened when Brazil's National Museum in Rio de Janeiro Museum burnt to the ground in 2018.

-- "The Brazil Museum Fire: What Was Lost," New York Times
-- "What Is Lost When a Museum Vanishes? In Brazil, a Nation's Story," New York Times

(Which should have been a wake up call throughout the museum and cultural heritage community.)

Washington Post graphic.

But Notre Dame Cathedral had an evacuation plan for its artifacts ("Evacuation plan saved most of Notre-Dame's treasures: insurance adjuster," Reuters), and it practiced, and so when the fire occurred, they were able to move most of the artifacts out of the building, even as the fire raged. From the article:

Some 90 percent of the priceless relics and art works housed within the Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral were saved from Monday’s devastating fire as contingency plans to evacuate the treasures worked, a leading insurance adjuster said on Wednesday.

The contingency evacuation plan included putting priorities on objects for removal, Honore told Reuters, adding “the plan itself worked perfectly and was adhered to the letter and that is why the contents lost is not as severe as might have been feared”. ...

Notre-Dame’s treasures are made up of 1,000 to 1,200 items including precious metals, traditional church dresses and paintings. More modern items also include a gift to the cathedral from Pope John Paul II.

What caused the fire: probably improper use of construction equipment.  I am betting, based on how both in new construction situations ("Fire Destroys More Than a Mixed-Use Project," New York Times, 2002; "Fires at VCU Close Part of Richmond," Washington Post, 2004; "Luxury New Jersey Apartment Complex Destroyed in Massive Fire," NBC New York, 2015) and in renovation situations such as with the fire at the Georgetown branch library in 2007 ("Liability for Georgetown Branch Fire Contested," American Libraries), unsafe use of powerful equipment--in Georgetown it was a heat gun used for stripping paint--led to the fire.