U.S. carpenter helping rebuild Notre Dame 5 years after devastating fire

Paris — Five years person passed since Notre Dame cathedral successful Paris was engulfed successful flames. The iconic spire and timber tile were destroyed successful nan blaze. People astir nan world were shocked astatine nan standard of nan occurrence and nan harm it caused, but activity to reconstruct nan iconic landmark to its erstwhile glory continues. 

Among those progressive successful nan monumental task is an American carpenter who was fixed a uncommon chance to return portion successful this historical restoration project. In 2023, Hank Silver was moving a mini carpentry business successful Massachusetts. Through a carpentry interaction successful France, he was asked if he wanted to subordinate a squad successful Normandy preparing timber to rebuild nan nave of Notre Dame.

"I could not opportunity 'no' to that opportunity," Silver told CBS News. "It's an opportunity that happens — erstwhile successful a life wouldn't moreover beryllium nan correct term, it's erstwhile successful a millennium, really."

Hank Silver, a carpenter from Massachusetts, useful connected tile trusses for nan nave of Paris' Notre Dame cathedral. Courtesy of Hank Silver

The 41-year-old unopen up shop and headed to occidental France to subordinate nan Atelier Desmonts carpentry team. All of nan laborers are skilled successful accepted building methods.

"In our shop successful Normandy, we received astir 600 oak logs, and it was each freshly trim oak, which is arsenic it was done traditionally. You activity pinch greenish wood, unseasoned wood, which is what I'm accustomed to doing successful nan U.S. arsenic well," Silver said. "We first hewed each nan logs utilizing axes successful bid to recreate that rippled decorativeness that you were capable to spot successful nan original cathedral successful nan 13th period framing."

There person been immoderate unexpected challenges for Silver and his colleagues arsenic they activity to recreate — precisely — a religion that has stood its crushed successful cardinal Paris for truthful galore centuries. 

"The architects asked america to reproduce each of nan deformations that had accrued complete 800 years. So, nan ridge is not a consecutive line, and truthful we had to travel this curvature, and nan walls, moreover though they were rebuilt by nan masons, they're not level and straight. And that led to a batch of complexities that nan original carpenters successful nan 13th period ne'er would person dealt with."

Silver is 1 of a fewer twelve foreigners who person helped rebuild nan cathedral, aft artisans from respective countries applied to beryllium portion of nan historical project. The man successful complaint of nan restoration, Philippe Jost, told CBS News that accepted carpenters, successful particular, traveled to Paris from astir nan world for nan restoration.

"Many carpenters came from nan United States, from England, from Denmark, from Spain, because they were fond of these techniques, fond of oak," Jost said, noting a "spirit of unity" among nan artisans. "There is pridefulness and humility," he said, adding that each nan workers connected nan tract "have been marked for life."

Hank Silver, a carpenter from Massachusetts, helps to reassemble tile trusses successful nan nave of Paris' Notre Dame cathedral. Courtesy of Hank Silver

The full nave was raised nether a shelter successful Normandy earlier being disassembled and past shipped to Paris past August, wherever Silver was portion of a smaller squad that reassembled each of nan trusses and past installed them successful nan nave of nan cathedral.

Last December, nan spire roseate again into nan Paris skyline, topped pinch a recreation of nan original aureate transverse and rooster. The rooster holds respective beatified relics, including what is reputed to beryllium a thorn from nan crown of thorns worn by Jesus Christ connected nan cross. 

The caller rooster has thing else, though. A 2nd enclosure was added, containing a scroll pinch nan names of everybody who worked connected nan cathedral's restoration — including Hank Silver.

"Isn't that cool?!" he said, intelligibly pleased pinch nan honor. "It's correct up there, protecting nan city."

The caller aureate rooster is seen atop nan spire betwixt nan 2 towers of Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral, Feb. 13, 2024, successful Paris, France.  Getty

With his activity connected nan restoration almost done, Silver said he'd for illustration to enactment successful France. He has a five-year residency licence that allows him to activity successful nan country, but he has his oculus connected citizenship, and he took advantage of a tract sojourn by nan French president to plead his case.

"I did manus Emmanuel Macron a missive requesting French citizenship," he told CBS News. 

"He has not been texting maine each day, overmuch to my disappointment. I person not heard backmost from him," Silver said. 

Macron has promised that Notre Dame will re-open to nan nationalist connected December 8 this year. But there's still a batch to do. Work to screen nan caller timber frames of nan tile and spire successful sheets of metallic and lead, arsenic they were earlier nan fire, continues. 

Finishing touches are besides being put connected nan caller occurrence information measures incorporated successful nan restoration, to protect nan religion against immoderate early damage.

The last stages will see placing specially designed furniture, including caller chairs, wrong nan building. Jost said nan cathedral would beryllium fresh for nan re-opening – and says nan restoration is not only wrong nan deadline, it is besides wrong budget.Donations person played a large portion successful financing nan monolithic restoration project. Of nan $900 cardinal collected, American donors, large and small, contributed a full of $32 million. "Americans person ever been fond of French heritage," says Jost. "I americium very grateful; we are each very grateful to American donors."

In:
• Paris
• Notre Dame
• Fire
• France
• Cathedrale Notre Dame de Paris