Huge flames, images that flew around the world… and residents poisoned by lead? Four years after the Notre-Dame de Paris fire, an investigative judge is investigating a complaint that accuses the authorities of failing to take all precautions to avoid contamination, AFP reports.

After the first complaint in the summer of 2021, which triggered a preliminary investigation, the association Henri Pesera, the departmental union CGT-Paris and two parents of the students filed a civil complaint in June 2022 asking for the appointment of an investigating judge, which was done, AFP reported on Wednesday from a source close to the file confirmed by a source in court.

On April 15, 2019, a giant fire ravaged the cathedral, a masterpiece of Gothic architecture, causing its famous spire, clock and part of the vault to collapse, as millions of people around the world watched in amazement.

During the fire, 400 tons of lead from the roof and spire of Notre-Dame de Paris were melted and released into the atmosphere, which is “almost four times the annual lead emissions into the atmosphere of all of France,” the plaintiffs say.

Although the risk of air pollution was quickly ruled out, residents and local associations quickly became concerned about the fallout of this toxic heavy metal, which could be carried home under the soles of shoes and swallowed by children.

Twelve days after the fire, the prefectural police advised local residents to clear their homes and indicated that access to certain areas, especially the gardens around the cathedral, with traces of lead, was prohibited.

In the summer of 2019, the market was closed and construction was suspended for several weeks after reports of measured lead levels. When it reopened, new measures were taken to protect workers.

At the same time, “preventive cleaning” was carried out in some schools adjacent to the cathedral. In five public schools, the beginning of the academic year was delayed for several days.

At the time, Paris City Hall assured that there was “no risk to the health” of the children, based on samples taken a month after the fire, an interpretation contested by associations of residents of the area.

In July 2021, the government agency Santé publique France said the fire did not cause a “significant” increase in the blood lead concentration of children in the area.

“Duties”

According to the plaintiffs, “despite the scale of the fire and the knowledge of the risks of contamination and contamination (…), the relevant authorities did not take any special precautions for more than three months after the fire,” creating a threat to “children (kindergartens and schools) and local workers (from the neighborhood and from the cathedral)”.

In their opinion, the Regional Health Agency (ARS), the Prefecture of Police (PP), the City Hall of Paris and the Ministry of Culture should have taken the most decisive measures immediately after the fire.

In a statement, the city of Paris, the ARS Ile-de-France and the prefecture of police, contacted by AFP, said they were “at the disposal of justice”.

ARS Ile-de-France recalled that “after the fire, a consolidated health surveillance system was put in place and the agency recommended preventive and control measures.”

The plaintiffs are also concerned about increased lead exposure associated with the location where the Titanic was launched immediately after the fire, as well as the lack of adequate protective measures for personnel working on site.

The plaintiffs’ lawyer, François Lafforgue, is “satisfied” and hopes the judicial inquiry “will shed light on the contamination of children who go to school or live near Notre Dame and the mass exposure of workers on site.”

In December, the Court of Appeal of Paris ruled another complaint by the Robin des Bois association inadmissible on procedural grounds.