At a Glance

Protecting Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral from the elements is a priority.The first step will be to construct a temporary roof to protect the cathedral from rain.Then engineers and architects can begin to assess the damage and salvage materials.

Hours after the devastating fire consumed Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral on Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron vowed to rebuild the 850-year-old landmark within five years. The first priority in that plan will be to quickly put up a temporary metal or plastic roof to protect what's left of the cathedral from the elements, especially from the rain.

The rest of this week is expected to be dry in Paris, but rain in the days or weeks ahead could cause more damage to the cathedral, considered the physical and spiritual heart of France.

Duncan Wilson, chief executive of the conservation organization Historic England, told the Associated Press Tuesday the cathedral must be made secure without disturbing debris scattered inside because the rubble may provide valuable information for restorers.

After the first step of constructing a temporary roof is completed, engineers and architects can begin to assess the damage, salvage materials and decide what direction will be taken to rebuild the cathedral.

“The second challenge is actually salvaging the material,” Wilson said. “Some of that material may be reusable, and that’s a painstaking exercise. It’s like an archaeological excavation.”

Other tasks that will need to be completed during the assessment phase include checking the architecture for "thermal shock" created from the heat of the fire followed by cold water used to combat the blaze.

An example of this are the cathedral's three prized stained-glass windows, which appear intact but may be more compromised than they appear to be because of thermal shock. The exquisite glass is set in lead so the heat followed by the cold water may have caused the glass to sag or become weakened.

Experts inspect the damaged Notre Dame cathedral after the fire in Paris, Tuesday, April 16, 2019. Experts are assessing the blackened shell of Paris' iconic Notre Dame cathedral to establish next steps to save what remains after a devastating fire destroyed much of the almost 900-year-old building.

(AP Photo/Kamil Zihnioglu)

After the structure is deemed stable and has been thoroughly assessed, a more permanent roof will likely be the first step in the actual reconstruction.

This may prove difficult, however, depending on the approach decided upon for restoring the cathedral.

The debate is already on in France on whether to reconstruct an exact replica of the French Gothic cathedral or go with a more modern design.

Controversy surrounding any changes made to the cathedral is not unprecedented in its .

The spire that broke the world's heart as it burned and eventually toppled into the burning cathedral on Monday wasn't added to the cathedral until the 1800s. The 295-foot wooden steeple that is called "la fleche" in French, or the arrow, was conceived by architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc in the wake of years of neglect and damage incurred before, during and after the French Revolution.

Much debate occurred before a final decision — a decision bolstered by supporter Victor Hugo, author of The Hunchback of Notre Dame — was made to go with Viollet-le-Duc.

If the decision is made to rebuild Notre Dame exactly as it was before the blaze, it may prove difficult to reconstruct the latticed roof supported by the massive oak beams that adorned Notre Dame. This is because there may be no trees big enough in Europe to construct the beams.

In the 13th century, centuries-old oak trees were used to build the beams and it was no easy task to find them, even then. Today, the urbanization in most European countries has left few virgin forests that can sustain the massive trees needed to make the beams.

Other approaches may include using smaller beams or perhaps even a metal roof, which may be an unpopular choice for purists, AP reported.

While Macron has vowed to rebuild in five years, most experts agree it will take years if not decades to complete the restoration, and the cost will be exorbitant.

Despite to devastation resulting from the fire, there are silver linings.

The world breathed a sigh of relief on Tuesday to learn the cathedral was still standing and much had survived the flames, including most of the prized artifacts saved by first responders, the "Great Organ" and its 8,000 pipes and the three treasured rose windows.

In photos taken of the interior of the cathedral following the blaze, tall whites candles still inexplicably remained in standing candelabras on either side of the high alter's unscathed cross, a symbol of hope for many.

Debris are seen inside Notre Dame cathedral in Paris, Tuesday, April 16, 2019. Candles still inexplicably remain unmelted in candelabras that adorn either side of the cathedral's high alter.

(Christophe Petit Tesson, Pool via AP)

Another positive is the immediate response of individuals, organizations, governments and businesses throughout the world who have already committed to making sure the costs of reconstruction are met.

As the debate begins on whether to preserve the cathedral as it was before the blaze on Monday or take a more modern approach, all seem to agree on one thing: Notre Dame will rise again.

“Cathedrals are stone phoenixes — reminders that out of adversity we may be reborn,” Emma Wells, a buildings archaeologist at the University of York, told the Associated Press.

“The silver lining, if we can call it that, is this allows for historians and archaeologists to come in and uncover more of its history than we ever knew before. It is a palimpsest of layers of history, and we can come in and understand the craft of our medieval forebears.”