Complaint filed for lead contamination following the Notre-Dame fire

Two Parisian families, a union and an association lodged a complaint in order to put pressure on the lead contamination around Notre-Dame cathedral, more than two years after the fire which destroyed the roof and the spire of the emblematic building .

The complaint, filed in a Paris court by a section of the CGT union, the Henri Pezerat association, and two families whose children have been exposed to lead dust in their homes and schools, comes after months of demands for information on the levels of lead contamination and requests for the restoration site to be better protected.

The plaintiffs accuse the police headquarters and the city of Paris of negligence, concealment of information and minimization of the effects of lead dust spread during the fire of April 15, 2019.

They estimate that more than 400 tonnes of lead have gone into the air as smoke.

In the aftermath of the fire, lead dust was found covering buildings and streets around Notre-Dame, and for miles around.

Lack of clarity sparked a trial

Lead is a toxic and carcinogenic substance which, even in low doses, is particularly harmful to young children.

Associations and residents had already sounded the alarm on lead contamination, and the CGT and the Henri Pezerat association demanded that the site be confined and decontaminated, and that the authorities specify where lead contamination could be found in the neighborhood.

They also called for medical attention for first responders, workers and residents who were exposed.

The lack of response from the authorities prompted them to file a complaint, which is based on complaints lodged with labor inspectors, alleging that the measures put in place on the site are not sufficient, or defective.

A similar complaint filed in the summer of 2019 by another association, Robin des Bois (Robinhood), was dismissed in December 2020.

Work on the site was halted for three weeks in 2019, due to the risk of lead contamination. And the esplanade in front of the cathedral was closed to the public in May after tests revealed high levels of lead particles.