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Subscribe to RSSAs the inspection continues, we hear from Katie Francis, one of the two women on the Washington Monument rappelling team. NBC's Brian Williams reports.
The U.S. Park Service reports that the engineers rappeling from the top of the Washington Monument have found new cracks and big flakes in the stones, according to NBC News. Despite the damage, the agency and engineers are confident that the landmark is structurally sound.
The engineers began inspecting the landmark on Tuesday in order to evaluate cracks and chips that were found after a 5.8-magnitude quake on Aug. 23.
At a Thursday morning briefing by the National Park Service, spokesperson Bill Line said that the engineers found loose mortar and some cracks. The team has completed its survey of both the pyramidium -- the very top of the monument -- and a preliminary survey of the exterior.
The team plans to complete a full inspection by examining all stones at close range. The engineers are testing stones with rubber mallets in order to hear whether or not they are hallow. Big flakes in the stones, known as spawls, are being removed.
Engineers are keeping an eye on a 4-foot long crack in one of the stones, which has not expanded since the earthquake, Line said.
The inspection was scheduled to last five days, though the engineers are prepared to cease working if the weather becomes dangerous.
NPS spokesperson Carol Johnson said that at least one engineer was thrilled with the experience of scaling the historic structure: "She feels honored to be on the Washington Monument, on what's a national icon, and she's really enjoying it."
A team of inspectors, rappelling down the Washington Monument on Wednesday, looked for damage caused by last month's earthquake. NBC's Brian Williams reports.
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Hallowed by mallet. Intriguing.
I was under the impression the stones in the monument were already considered sacred. Apparently a mallet is needed to confirm it.
hallow- verb: 1. to make holy or sanctify; to consecrate
2. to honor as holy; consider sacred
Testing to see "whether or not the stones are hallow." Another example of NBC News and msnbc.com sloppy journalistic skills.
Well, I did wonder why they said that and had a Twilight Zone moment when I considered what the sentence meant..lol. But then the whole sentence structure was odd, so why would I be surprised.
Just out of curiousity, are there still universities that offer journalism degrees? It seems bloggers have taken over the news now or something....
Just to clarify, I wasn't insulting bloggers. There are some wonderful bloggers and I enjoy reading blogs. I was referring to the old days when it was rare to find errors in news text. It seems they are everywhere now.
I'm curious if they plan on fixing any holies if they find them behind the stones?
Another Obama failure
get a proofreader, morons
After the multi-million renovation done just a couple of years ago, I am amazed by the amount of damage they are reporting. I am beginning to wonder if there was any oversight to the way our money was spend during this refit.
Instead of repairing it why not tear it down and build a bigger stronger taller monument
The current one just represents the rot that is America anyway--slowing cracking and rotting away.