It's been almost five years since the earthquake that severely damaged the National Cathedral. The next phase of a $32 million restoration is set to get underway.
Scaffolding went up around Easter, to prepare for Phase II of the National Cathedral’s restoration.
(WTOP/Neal Augenstein)
WTOP/Neal Augenstein
In replacing broken pieces, robots are able to carve rough concrete elements, with fine details provided by stone carvers.
(WTOP/Neal Augenstein)
WTOP/Neal Augenstein
Twelve stories up, Jim Shepherd, the cathedral’s director of preservation and facilities demonstrates how cracked pinnacles can be rocked back and forth.
(WTOP/Neal Augenstein)
WTOP/Neal Augenstein
Phase II of the restoration will cost more than $1 million to repair buttresses and pinnacles on the North Transept facade.
(WTOP/Neal Augenstein)
WTOP/Neal Augenstein
When originally installed gravity held these heavy pieces together — with restoration they’ll include steel rods.
(WTOP/Neal Augenstein)
WTOP/Neal Augenstein
Pinnacles that were damaged by the 2011 earthquake were removed and numbered before being restored.
(WTOP/Neal Augenstein)
WTOP/Neal Augenstein
As a religious organization, the National Cathedral relies on private donations, but needs $20 million to complete the restoration. (WTOP/Neal Augenstein)
WASHINGTON — Almost five years after a 5.8-magnitude earthquake that cracked, broke and twisted portions of the Washington National Cathedral, the second phase of restoration is about to begin.
Since the Aug. 23, 2011 quake, initial restoration consisted of stabilizing and planning.
Phase I repairs included restoration of the Nave ceiling, and repairs and reinforcement of six flying buttresses on the exterior east end — the oldest part of the cathedral.
Phase I ended in June 2015, with 12 percent of the exterior repairs completed.
Jim Shepherd, the cathedral’s director of preservation and facilities, and head stonemason Joe Alonso on Thursday will show several of the broken pinnacle pieces that fell off the building during the earthquake, along with their robotically-carved replacements.
In a scheduled news conference, Shepherd will give an update on the funding and timeline of the $32 million restoration effort.
Phase II will take much longer and be more expensive than work to this point, according to cathedral officials.
The upcoming phase will complete the building’s exterior repairs, and will take over a decade and an estimated $22 million to finish.
The 2011 earthquake was the largest East Coast temblor in nearly 115 years.
Neal Augenstein has been a general assignment reporter with WTOP since 1997. He says he looks forward to coming to work every day, even though that means waking up at 3:30 a.m.
