No one is planning to do that. Filling entry points with concrete, though, which is what the article is referring to, has been standard practice for a long time. And breaking up those large blobs of concrete has been a core activity of cataphiles for as long as it happened.
I was not a cataphile but, like lots of locals, I used to go down there almost every week-end in the mid-to-late 90s. The times of large decadent parties were already over by then. You could still meet a surprising number and variety of people but the "ambiance" was not as romantic as you might think from reading the article: the IGC was doing crackdowns and blocking entry points, the cataphiles were very hostile to other visitors, and the few "parties" that still happened at "La plage" or elsewhere where really a handful of people smoking weed.
The catacombs were a pretty cool playground to have, that's for sure, but let's not exaggerate its cultural importance.
No one is planning to do that. Filling entry points with concrete
Filling is mostly to reinforce zones threatened by collapse. Entrances are secured mostly by sawing off the ladder rungs and welding the manhole covers.
ambiance" was not as romantic as you might think from reading the article
Romantic to people who enjoy mud !
cataphiles were very hostile to other visitors
The small groups who go down to party in what they consider their own private space can indeed be a bit noxious, with reactions such as lighting up smoke generating fireworks to drown the a bit of the network... I won't forget the adventure of finding our ways with one foot visibility.
Filling is mostly to reinforce zones threatened by collapse. Entrances are secured mostly by sawing off the ladder rungs and welding the manhole covers.
They started using concrete to block entrances too, for the better-known entrypoints.
I remember seeing a popular entrance on the PC sealed with concrete a couple of times in those days… only for the cataphiles to dig up a new one a couple meters away.
Wow, hat is a new development - it had always been left as a "safety valve" to let tourists access from that unchallenging part of the network... But yes, the low gallery goes all along the Petite Ceinture tunnel, only a brick layer away !
Unlike in the 19th century, when weak cavities were shored up by purpose-built pillars, the policy now is to inject concrete to fill up endangered spaces
The parent's "them" is not your quote's "endangered spaces". There is no plan to fill the carrières/catacombs (the parent's "them") with concrete and filling parts of it (your quote's "spaces) has been an established practice for decades, either for structural reasons (new metro lines, etc.) or for policing reasons (preventing people from entering the system). It was really hard 30 years ago to stay underground for more than one hour without having to squirt your way above a blob of concrete.
Yes, it progressively makes parts of the system harder or impossible to reach and something is definitely lost in the process for the very few who care but that's how the underground in general—and this underground in particular—has always worked.
I really don't see how "there is no plan to fill the catacombs, except for the public plan that's been in place for decades" is supposed to be a defense to the argument "we shouldn't fill the catacombs".
There was no argument to defend to, only a misconception to correct.
But, if you really want to make the argument that "we shouldn't fill the catacombs", then feel free to petition the IGC, because it is "they", not "we", who are in charge. Be more precise in your petition, though, because "the catacombs" is a very specific and profitable part of the system that no one ever thought of filling up with anything but tourists.
FWIW, I haven't gone down there for nearly three decades so I don't care one bit about the catacombs and the cataphiles. While I have very fond memories of the time I spent down there when I was younger, I moved on, as most people did. If "they" need to fill up a short section somewhere to prevent collapse during the new Metro works, I am fine with it.
Sad to see they are planning on filling them up with concrete:(
I'm not sure what "them" exactly refers to, here, probably "the Paris Catacombs" in the title… which is not very precise. The misconception is that there is a plan to fill up a) the publicly accessible part of the network (the actual "catacombs"), or b) the non-publicly accessible parts of the network (the "carrières" and "abris" that both cataphiles and casuals incorrectly call "catacombs"), or c) both with concrete.
The publicly accessible part is basically the ossuaries, which is a very popular tourist spot. That part is profitable and very well maintained so there is no reason whatsoever to fill it with concrete.
The non-publicly accessible parts are the ones the cataphiles care about. _Many_ parts of it have been clogged with concrete over the past decades for the reasons already mentioned, but there is no plan to do that at the scale of the network which, given its size, would be insanely costly, challenging and pointless. No one is planning to do that.
The whole network? No. Just no.
What will continue to happen is concrete being poured here and there whenever the IGC identifies a security risk that can only be mitigated that way—entitled weed smokers be damned—and the cataphiles being pissed about something they can't do shit about.
Comments
Sad to see they are planning on filling them up with concrete:(
No one is planning to do that. Filling entry points with concrete, though, which is what the article is referring to, has been standard practice for a long time. And breaking up those large blobs of concrete has been a core activity of cataphiles for as long as it happened.
I was not a cataphile but, like lots of locals, I used to go down there almost every week-end in the mid-to-late 90s. The times of large decadent parties were already over by then. You could still meet a surprising number and variety of people but the "ambiance" was not as romantic as you might think from reading the article: the IGC was doing crackdowns and blocking entry points, the cataphiles were very hostile to other visitors, and the few "parties" that still happened at "La plage" or elsewhere where really a handful of people smoking weed.
The catacombs were a pretty cool playground to have, that's for sure, but let's not exaggerate its cultural importance.
Filling is mostly to reinforce zones threatened by collapse. Entrances are secured mostly by sawing off the ladder rungs and welding the manhole covers.
Romantic to people who enjoy mud !
The small groups who go down to party in what they consider their own private space can indeed be a bit noxious, with reactions such as lighting up smoke generating fireworks to drown the a bit of the network... I won't forget the adventure of finding our ways with one foot visibility.
They started using concrete to block entrances too, for the better-known entrypoints.
I remember seeing a popular entrance on the PC sealed with concrete a couple of times in those days… only for the cataphiles to dig up a new one a couple meters away.
Wow, hat is a new development - it had always been left as a "safety valve" to let tourists access from that unchallenging part of the network... But yes, the low gallery goes all along the Petite Ceinture tunnel, only a brick layer away !
That was in 94-95.
My catacombs era was around 2000-2020 - so I've only know that entrance after it was reopened
These stories and your reply solidify the cultural importance!
That's very far from "filling them up" and the practice is decades old.
It's literally described as "filling them up".
The parent's "them" is not your quote's "endangered spaces". There is no plan to fill the carrières/catacombs (the parent's "them") with concrete and filling parts of it (your quote's "spaces) has been an established practice for decades, either for structural reasons (new metro lines, etc.) or for policing reasons (preventing people from entering the system). It was really hard 30 years ago to stay underground for more than one hour without having to squirt your way above a blob of concrete.
Yes, it progressively makes parts of the system harder or impossible to reach and something is definitely lost in the process for the very few who care but that's how the underground in general—and this underground in particular—has always worked.
I really don't see how "there is no plan to fill the catacombs, except for the public plan that's been in place for decades" is supposed to be a defense to the argument "we shouldn't fill the catacombs".
There was no argument to defend to, only a misconception to correct.
But, if you really want to make the argument that "we shouldn't fill the catacombs", then feel free to petition the IGC, because it is "they", not "we", who are in charge. Be more precise in your petition, though, because "the catacombs" is a very specific and profitable part of the system that no one ever thought of filling up with anything but tourists.
FWIW, I haven't gone down there for nearly three decades so I don't care one bit about the catacombs and the cataphiles. While I have very fond memories of the time I spent down there when I was younger, I moved on, as most people did. If "they" need to fill up a short section somewhere to prevent collapse during the new Metro works, I am fine with it.
What was the misconception?
I'm not sure what "them" exactly refers to, here, probably "the Paris Catacombs" in the title… which is not very precise. The misconception is that there is a plan to fill up a) the publicly accessible part of the network (the actual "catacombs"), or b) the non-publicly accessible parts of the network (the "carrières" and "abris" that both cataphiles and casuals incorrectly call "catacombs"), or c) both with concrete.
The publicly accessible part is basically the ossuaries, which is a very popular tourist spot. That part is profitable and very well maintained so there is no reason whatsoever to fill it with concrete.
The non-publicly accessible parts are the ones the cataphiles care about. _Many_ parts of it have been clogged with concrete over the past decades for the reasons already mentioned, but there is no plan to do that at the scale of the network which, given its size, would be insanely costly, challenging and pointless. No one is planning to do that.
The whole network? No. Just no.
What will continue to happen is concrete being poured here and there whenever the IGC identifies a security risk that can only be mitigated that way—entitled weed smokers be damned—and the cataphiles being pissed about something they can't do shit about.
Sounds more like divided into sections by concrete walls than actually filled, which would be, uh, definitely not climate friendly.
We had to destroy or heritage in order to save it?