The Seine’s Renaissance

A CLEANUP OF OLYMPIC PROPORTIONS IS PLAYING OUT ON FRANCE’S MOST CELEBRATED RIVER

Words by MARY WINSTON NICKLIN

A MAN CLIMBS OVER THE RAIL of the Pont des Arts in Paris. Below, the Nesquik-colored currents of the Seine, swollen from recent rain, sluice past the Louvre Museum. A crowd of spectators gathers and gawks. And then he jumps. Thomas is one of the elite Paris firefighters stationed at the La Monnaie Rescue Center, a floating fire station in central Paris. (Official policy requires the omission of last names for security.) He bobs in the river for a matter of seconds before fellow firefighters fish him out of the 37-degree water and into a waiting rescue boat. Training exercises complete, the pilot speeds back to their base—a converted 1927 cargo boat that’s kitted out with a gym, an aquarium, and an outdoor shower with the prettiest views in Paris. Under…

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National Geographic (Digital) - 1 Issue, August 2024

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