OXFORD, England (CNS)—The Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes, one of Europe's best-known pilgrimage sites, has been partially closed for repairs amid reports that falling rocks in its fabled grotto could signal a major landslide.
Work to secure the massive rock face above the grotto started Jan. 3 and was expected to continue through February, said the Diocese of Tarbes and Lourdes.
Despite the work, the grotto would remain "open and welcoming" during construction, the diocese said.
Bishop Jacques Perrier of Tarbes and Lourdes detailed some of the work to be completed during a December news conference. He said the celebration of Mass would be canceled but that the daily rosary service at 3 p.m. would continue until repairs are completed.
"The rope inspection revealed that the rock on the northwest side has been affected during bad weather by very high humidity, which has led to the development of vegetation," Bishop Perrier explained.
"These conditions have contributed to erosions in the rock, principally horizontal, which have caused water to stagnate in the stone and split it when frozen. Year by year, the rock is shifting," he said.
The project will find workers affixing lose chunks of rock, some weighing up to 15 tons, to the existing rock face. Safety nets also will be installed to catch any rocks that may fall in the future.
Lourdes, near the Pyrenees mountains in southern France, attracts about 6 million visitors annually and has been a place of pilgrimage since 1858, when St. Bernardette Soubirous experienced the first of 18 visions of Mary.
Linkback:
https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=36261.0
Topic: Rockslides Partially Close Grotto at Lourdes Shrine (Read 530 times)