France: Spire of Rouen Cathedral in flames

Rouen: The spire of the cathedral in the northern French city of Rouen caught fire on Thursday, but firefighters managed to put out the blaze at the famed landmark after a couple of hours.

Rouen Mayor Nicolas Mayer-Rossignol posted an image of smoke rising from the cathedral on X, formerly Twitter, adding that the cause of the blaze was "unknown at this stage."

Workers discovered the fire at a height of around 120 metres at midday and raised the alarm.

Nearly a 100 firefighters responded and reached the tower using a giant ladder.

Rouen Archbishop Dominique Lebrun told broadcaster BFMTV that welding work may have been the cause of the fire.

"The interior was saved, above all the works of art," said Culture Minister Rachida Dati, who visited the scene at the request of President Emmanuel Macron.

"We have narrowly avoided another catastrophe," she said.

The cathedral was painted several times by French impressionist Claude Monet in the late 19th century.

Bishop Lebrun said workers who had been on site for the spire's renovations were safe.

The earlier scenes were reminiscent of the devastating fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in 2019, which also started during renovation works.