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Washington Mounument Daredevil Engineers to Inspect National Cathedral
Wednesday, Oct 5, 2011 | Updated 9:07 PM EDT
A wind gust tossed one of the engineers inspecting the Washington Monument 30 feet off the wall on Friday. Erik Sohn said he kind of liked the experience.
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Those daredevil engineers who spent about a week rappelling down the Washington Monument to inspect it for earthquake damage have another job to tackle in the city.
The August earthquake also damaged the National Cathedral. The team of engineers will inspect it, too – possibly later this month.
Climbers with architectural firm WJE’s Difficult Access Team completed its descent of the Washington Monument before 11 a.m. Wednesday. In addition to checking for damage, the team removed loose mortar and stone. WJE will use the data they compiled to help complete their final evaluation and recommendations.
The National Cathedral is scheduled to reopen Nov. 12, but the complete restoration could take several years. The estimate for renovations and operational costs is $25 million.
The Aug. 23 quake damaged the cathedral's pinnacles and knocked parts of the structure to the ground. Crews have been putting up scaffolding and steel beams on top of the building in order to reach damaged pieces. Some will be replaced, while others may have to be re-carved.
The next NBC Washington PNC Bank Community Shred is scheduled for June 16, 2012.
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