New Jersey residents looking to reflect on and process a large fire at the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris flocked to the state’s own historic cathedral.

The Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark is one of the country’s largest cathedrals and is one of the city’s most famous buildings.

Joe Stern and Bob Labate say that they came to the Cathedral Basilica Tuesday to take some pictures. They say that it reminds them of Notre Dame.

“We were there twice in the last five years and it’s just such a loss. Our hearts are just broken,” says Stern.

The French Gothic Revival architecture of Newark’s cathedral draws obvious comparisons to Notre Dame.

“You definitely can see the image of Notre Dame on the back of the building, as well as the front,” Labate says.

And with this week being the lead-up to Easter – the most solemn week on the Christian calendar – the fire at the 850-year-old church makes the damage more devastating to the faithful.

Diana Ruiz, of Deal Township, says that she looked up the Cathedral Basilica online after seeing the fire at Notre Dame. She says that she wanted to see the Newark landmark in person.

“We know what happened in Paris and we are heartbroken about that,” she says.

Many visitors said that they also found a sense of inspiration knowing that the Cathedral Basilica is a part of New Jersey.