On the night of Friday June 12 to Saturday June 13, the fire at the Condom media library destroyed more than 90% of the historical collection of 4,300 works, including books dating from the 17th century. Firefighters, elected officials, municipal agents and volunteers mobilized from the first hours to save what could be saved. While the investigation continues and an archivist must list the damage with the Drac, the Heritage Foundation goes to the site on Tuesday and the Minister of Culture has already contacted Mayor Jean-François Sabathier.
On the night of Friday June 12 to Saturday June 13, as soon as the last flames had been extinguished by the firefighters, a strange ballet took place in the media library plunged into darkness.
Also read:
Serious fire in the cloister of Condom Cathedral: an entire wing of the building and thousands of works destroyed, including archives from the 17th century
By the light of torches, firefighters searched the rubble in search of works from the city’s historical collection which may have escaped the disaster. Surveillance rounds of hot spots are to take place until Monday.Â
A fund of 4,300 pounds
Hundreds of books were thus extracted from the soot and humidity to reach tables and floors in order to begin a first drying operation. The hardest hit are works intended for scientists – history, sciences, religions – and in particular the oldest, some dating from the 17th century.
“We followed the recommendations of the Drac (Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs, Editor’s note), explained Mayor Jean-François Sabathier on Saturday. Secondly, we will talk about preservation and then restoration. Out of 4,300 works, more than 90% of the fund is destroyed or damaged.”
Investing the different rooms of the media library, the floors and numerous tables, the city staff and elected officials continued this work throughout the day on Saturday, helped by around thirty volunteers who responded in number to the call launched in particular via the neighborhood committee of the cathedral.
The works that were able to be saved are now stored in several preserved rooms of the media library. An archivist, present on site, will work in the coming days in close collaboration with the Drac to list all the books affected by the disaster.
Damaged vaults
In addition to the city’s historical heritage, it is the building itself which suffered greatly from the passage of the flames. The floor is charred and its roof has disappeared. Also worrying is the fact that the vaults below were subject to a runoff of water throughout the evening to the point that pieces of stone were already breaking away.
“They are showing signs of weakness, so our priority will be to protect the building with an umbrella, a large tarpaulin which will act as a barrier in the event of rain,” explains Jean-François Sabathier.
After access to the west wing of the cloister, the entire perimeter is now closed, “due firstly to the criminal investigations which are being undertaken by the investigators. Will come after the time of the expertise. The cloister is therefore closed until further notice”, announced the councilor on Saturday.
Also read:
Serious fire in the cloister of Condom Cathedral: firefighters mobilized to protect the religious building and the sub-prefecture building from the flames
On the heritage front, the Heritage Foundation must go to the site this Tuesday, June 16 to launch a support agreement, the first concrete step towards aid for restoration. At the national level, the Minister of Culture made contact this weekend with the mayor of Condom, Jean-François Sabathier.
