Massive fire at Notre Dame Cathedral - Paris 5

[bridgebuster]

I wouldn't call this an "engineering disaster" but tragic none the less.

Link

 

[BridgeSmith]

...and the answers on cigarettes or electrical malfunctions causing the fire were no and no. So, still nothing but speculation on the cause of the fire.

 

[charliealphabravo]

There must be more than conjecture or they could not have excluded electrical and cigarettes as potential causes.

 

[BridgeSmith]

The discounting of cigarettes and electrical shorts as potential causes is based on the unlikelihood of those sources of ignition being capable of igniting the large, dense oak timbers, not based on whether they were present or not.

 

[charliealphabravo]

Isn't it conjectural to eliminate a cause based only on probability before the investigation has concluded? Electrical causes are usually the last to be excluded since they are, unfortunately, commonly used as the default in the absence of all other demonstrated causes.

There was no power in the roof area and temporary power is an easy thing to get wrong. We are talking 50 to 100 amp temporary feeders with 6 gauge conductors or larger.

I am personally more inclined to suspect arson but these others cannot be excluded yet I think.

 

[waross]

charliealphabravo; Have you yet come across an explanation for the flash seen in the video you have posted?
That sure looks like an electric arc.

Bill
--------------------
"Why not the best?"
Jimmy Carter

 

[charliealphabravo]

No nothing yet. The flash does seem to spill downward over a couple of frames which looks suspicious, but I suppose it could also be a rolling shutter effect of something as harmless as a camera flash.

 

[LionelHutz]

That flash on the scaffold well above the roof line with no immediately following fire seems very unlikely to be the cause. My guess would be a camera flash.