The Last Tower Roof, Tension Cables and a Dirt Cage

I lucked into arriving at the site in time to see the last tower roof raised.

This was a lot of fun to watch.

A red ladder waited to help the workmen from the north lot get to the top of the tower.  Please notice the cable on the left which is securing the scaffolding to the tabernacle.

I'm pretty sure this is our last chance to see inside a tower roof.  I spied a red lamp on the right and could only guess its purpose.  It makes me happy to know the dark wood is original.  The workmen have been charged with preserving as much as they can.

I learned something fun today.  We have seen these white beams placed across the tops of each tower before the roofs were affixed.  I had assumed they were an integral part of securing the tower roofs.  I was wrong.  The beam's sole purpose is to hold the chain for the chandelier in each tower above the spiral staircase.

This workman, and another just out of sight on the left, worked to position the roof for perhaps a half hour.

In my mind, this was a momentous day!

While waiting for the tower roof, I watched this man clean brick on the northeast tower.  The job of cleaning, restoring, replacing and repointing the brick will take many months.

Tension cables are now stretched out along the west lot roof.  You can see horizontal men at work in orange vests setting the rebar in the trenches in these concrete forms.  My engineer-husband has informed me that these trenches are actually beams for the roof.  The cables will be placed in the beams/trenches and more rebar will eventually cover this entire area.  Hydraulic jacks will pull the cables tight after the concrete is poured.  Once all the forms are removed, the cables will be part of the beams of the roof.

It was a shirt-sleeve day, although not intentionally.  When I saw the crane about to lift the tower roof, I accidentally left my jacket in the car in my haste to get to my lookout spot.  As long as I was in the sun, it was gorgeous.

These black frames will hold concrete forms against the wall stretching along the post office lot.

The building looks much more majestic with the steeple and tower roofs in place.  We will soon begin to see the underground foyer rising on top of the green rebar.

Several onlookers observed the progress from the post office lot.  My friend Carol and I had fun watching the action.

This was actually the action we were watching.

I have been intrigued with the dirt on the east side.  This dirt is secured in wire cages, and I'm sorry, but that's pretty much the extent of my knowledge.

Because the baptistery is on this side of the basement, there is not a lateral wall on the interior to put any pressure against the east wall of the foundation.  As a result, the dirt is actually not against the concrete.  The cages help the dirt keep its distance, about a foot or so.

Rebar was placed over the gap between the dirt cages and the foundation last week.  Concrete was then poured over the rebar.  This level will ultimately be several feel below the surface.

Can you envision driving in through the west entrance on far left side of this picture and dropping off people at the foyer before parking your car?

Maybe you can envision rosette glass in the triangles in these steel beams.  A chandelier will hang from the center point over the Celestial room.

The hole the dashing track hoes dug last week will be a sump.

The new south entrance to the site is across the top of this picture. The former entrance is marked by dirt along the wooden barrier wall on the left. The south lift station is easy to see. 

This is what progress looks like.