A major fire erupted at the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris on April 15th. The iconic spire at the top of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris has collapsed after a major fire broke out. Though the fire has since been extinguished, the impact of the accident will not be easily forgotten.
4月15日，著名的巴黎圣母院发生大火，在经历数小时的熊熊燃烧后，教堂标志性的尖顶轰然倒下。尽管大火目前已经被扑灭，但是这场火灾已经成为震惊世界的一桩事件。
Authorities have not yet released any information on the cause of the fire and said it would be investigated. The fire may potentially involve renovation work that was being carried out at the site. Extensive scaffolding covered a portion of the roof as part of the $6.8 million project before the fire broke out.
法国官方目前仍在调查，没有披露关于这场火灾的具体起因。外部猜测火灾可能是由于巴黎圣母院正在进行的修缮工程所引发。在大火发生之时，教堂正在进行一项耗费680万美元的修缮工程，屋顶部分被大量的脚手架覆盖。
French President Emmanuel Macron addressed the nation immediately after the incident. Macron called the fire a "terrible tragedy" and confirmed that the cathedral's stone facade and two main towers avoided collapsing amid the destruction. “We will rebuild this cathedral together,” he guaranteed his people.
法国总统马克龙在火灾发生后迅速向全国发表了讲话，他称这次火灾为一场“可怕的悲剧”，同时表示圣母院的石外立面和两座主塔并没有倒塌，此外还向民众确保“我们将一起重建巴黎圣母院”。
Despite the massive fire at the historic Notre Dame Cathedral is a "tragedy for the world", some of the treasures inside Notre Dame were saved. A centuries-old crown of thorns made of gold, and the tunic worn by Saint Louis, a 13th century king of France, were safely retrieved. Meanwhile, though the spire has fallen, 16 statues there were just removed for restoration four days ago.
尽管这场大火被称为“世界悲剧”，巴黎圣母院内的很多珍宝得以幸免，包括一座数百年历史的黄金王冠和路易十三国王穿过的束腰上衣都幸免于难。与此同时，坠落尖顶下放置的十六座雕塑也毫发无损，因为为了这场修缮在四天前它们便已经被移出。
Notre Dame symbolizes the city of Paris. It is a cathedral of Paris, but it has always been considered a cathedral of France. Many people came to know it from Victor Hugo's Notre Dame de Paris. It is worth mention that popular interest in the cathedral blossomed soon after the publication in 1831. Before that, the cathedral has been severely destroyed during the French Revolution in the 1790s. The cathedral before the fire was mainly a restored work between 1844 and 1864.
巴黎圣母院作为巴黎城市的著名象征，在某种意义上也代表了法国的宗教文化。很多人从雨果的著名小说《巴黎圣母院》中认识了它，但值得一提的是，大众对于这座教堂的广泛兴趣也正是因为雨果小说在1831年的出版而开始显现。在此之前，原有的巴黎圣母院在18世纪90年代的法国大革命中被严重损毁。这次火灾发生前人们所看到的教堂，主要是1844至1864年间的修缮成果。
VOCABULARY
spire: n.（建筑）尖顶
scaffold: n. 脚手架
tunic: n. 束腰上衣