Notre Dame: the 200,000 bees of the cathedral saved from fire

"The bees are alive, until I have no news this morning," he told the agency AFP beekeeper Nicolas Giant who takes care of hives located in the sacristy, on one side of the temple.

"At first I thought the three hives had been burned, I had no information, but I saw in the satellite images that it was not so and the spokesman for the Cathedral confirmed that they were in and out of their hives, "he added.

Giant has received messages and calls from all over the world asking if the bees were dead from the flames.

IN ADDITION:

Notre Dame Cathedral will be closed for at least six years

They have collected more than 800 million euros of donations to restore

"It was unexpected.I received calls from Europe of course, but also from South Africa, Japan, the United States and America. South, "he said.

In case of fire and first signs of smoke, bees take a lot of honey and protect their queen.

"This species (European bee) does not leave its hive. (…) CO2 (carbon dioxide) numbs them," said Giant, who hopes to see bees again next week.

Each hive produces an average of 25 kilograms of honey each year, sold to the Notre Dame staff who have been sheltering them since 2013.

It has become commonplace that hives are installed in the French capital in various and unexpected places, such as the Paris Opera.