A leak in an old pipe, which was in poor condition, damages historical works and documents

The information was revealed this Sunday by The Art Tribunea specialized publication, and confirmed by the channel BFMTVwhich was able to consult several photographs of the accident and an internal email from the Hygiene, Safety and Working Conditions Committee (CHSCT) in which it reported what happened.

That message explained in detail what happened: a valve that fed the pipes, placed on top of the documentation, caused a major flood of dirty water which seriously damaged works and documents and considerably damaged the employees’ workspaces.

Those who worked that night were able to contain the leak, preventing further damageand eliminate the risk that the leak could reach the electrical box.

Didier Rykner, head of The Art Tribune, He estimated that “about 400 works” were damaged, leaving some of them in an “unrecoverable” state.

Rykner denounced that this incident is not a surprise because “for years” the department’s staff has been asking for funds to protect books from potential rupture of pipelines “whose dilapidated state is well known.”

Rykner complained that the supposedly deplorable state of these facilities contrasts with the 276,000 euros spent to essentially buy designer furniture for the offices of the president-director of the Louvre, Laurence des Cars, its general administrator and some other employees who have their offices in that area.

All this happens at a time when the Louvre is embroiled in controversy over the spectacular robbery of which he was a victim on October 19in which a group of thieves who entered the Apollo gallery in broad daylight with a forklift took the crown jewels of France.

All members of the commando have been arrested, but the jewelry has not been recovered. Next Wednesday in the Senate the conclusions of the administrative investigation that was launched to clarify what happened and possible security failures will be presented.

The president and director of the Louvre, Laurence des Cars, explained that after this incident, around twenty urgent measures were put in place to secure the museum, including the installation of a hundred perimeter cameras and the installation of a mobile Police post inside.