The Notre Dame Cathedral is on fire in central Paris, capital of France, on April 15, 2019. A blaze broke out on Monday afternoon at the Notre Dame Cathedral in central Paris where firefighters were still fighting to put the fire under control, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said. (Xinhua/Gao Jing)
PARIS, April 16 (Xinhua) -- The devastating fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in central Paris has been put out after burning for 15 hours, local media reported on Tuesday.
"The whole fire is extinguished," Paris firefighters' spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Gabriel Plus told local media.
Local firefighters worked through the night to monitor the cathedral's structure and extinguish residual pockets of fire inside the building, Plus said.
"During the night, the 1000-square-meter roof went up in smoke. Until this morning the mission was to preserve the two bell towers ... to ensure that they will not collapse," he said.
Thorough checks on the cathedral's structural soundness would be needed, he added.
In early Monday evening, a fire broke out in the famed cathedral. Online footage showed thick smoke billowing from the top of the cathedral and huge flames between its two bell towers engulfing the spire and the entire roof which both collapsed later.
According to the official Paris fire service Twitter account, nearly 400 firefighters attended the scene, while "2 police officers and a firefighter were slightly injured."
"The cathedral's structure is saved and the main works of art are safe," it said.
According to local media, the fire, which broke out at around 1645 GMT, may be linked to renovation works.
Paris prosecutors said police will conduct an investigation into "involuntary destruction by fire." Criminal motives have been ruled out.
Notre Dame is considered one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture which receives about 12 million visitors every year.
