Spain to review safety at key historic monuments following Notre-Dame fire

SPAIN has called a special meeting in Madrid to discuss plans to review safety arrangements and “protect cultural goods in case of an emergency” after the devastating blaze at the Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris.

Government Culture Minister Jose Guirao said: “Obviously (the Notre-Dame fire) was an alarm bell and we will review all the installations.”

“The danger is with old electric installations which have to be surveyed… but that in general, the installations in our big monuments are safe.”

Spain has 47 UNESCO World Heritage sites of which 41 are cultural, 4 are natural and 2 are mixed.

The first sites listed in Spain were the Mosque of Cordoba; the Alhambra and the Generalife, Granada; Burgos Cathedral; Monastery and site of the Escorial, Madrid; and the Park Güell, Palau Güell and Casa Mila in Barcelona”.

In a radio interview Guirao also said he would hold talks with his French counterpart Frank Riester to offer help in the rebuilding of the Notre-Dame.