I Saw A Mighty Angel Fly

I arrived at the site about noon.  The skies were clear, but a storm was on its way.

Moroni came about 1 pm, casually, on a trailer.  Who knew?

He didn't enter the site completely assembled. A workman is holding the trumpet, still wrapped.

Moroni has a counterweight, a long pipe.  At the bottom of the heavy pipe are keys which have a matching connection inside the steeple which lock him in tight.  You are also seeing the grounding cable in case lightning strikes.

I am certain this is special epoxy for the trumpet.  A bolt was involved, too.

This Moroni is 13 feet tall and weighs 350 pounds.  Here's a link to more Moroni trivia.

These men were working under pressure.  I assure you, lots of observers.  By the time Moroni was lifted up, onlookers had packed the downtown streets, sidewalks and roofs.

My camera was delighted to spy this movie camera duct-taped to the crane block.  Mormon Newsroom posted pictures and the resulting movie is here.

James was the expert at the top of the steeple.  This was his second Moroni placement.

I saw a mighty angel fly;

To earth he bent his way,

A message bearing from on high

To cheer the sons of day.

Truth is the message which he bears,

The gospel's joyful sound,

To calm our doubts,

To chase our fears,

And make our joys abound.

He cries, and with a mighty voice;

Ye nations lend an ear.

And isles and continents rejoice; The great Redeemer's near.

He cries; let every ear attend, and thrones and empires all!

Fear God and make the Lord your friend,

The king, the Lord of all!

Moroni Today!

A storm is moving in tonight, so the Church announced that Moroni is going up today about 2:30.  This picture from the construction cam shows them getting ready.

Steeple Is Waiting

I couldn't get to the site today until about 5.  I know it's frustrating when the construction cam is down for two days, but, whew, we didn't miss anything.

Mr. Crane's last day is Wednesday.  I'm going to miss him.

He has one major job to complete before he's off the clock.

My camera says the steeple is ready.

The globe Moroni stands on will fit on this copper puzzle piece.

Even late on a Friday afternoon, the men were still working.

Six pillars will line the underground entrance.  The forms have buried two; two more will soon be engulfed.  Green vertical rebar marks a 5th pillar and the sixth is out of view.  The oval puddle in the center of the photo is a space created for paving stones.  We've had some odd spring weather this week, including hail and snow, but the water will evaporate soon.

It's fun to watch forms and supports fill the labyrinth area.

It's much easier to visualize ground level now.

Forms are being built for the underground anterior room of the pavilion.

I wasn't expecting the work here to be so dramatic.

The entrance will be between these two windows.

The concrete pump poured more cement in the south area of the pavilion this afternoon.

The pump was leaving as I arrived.  The black crane worked right until 5.  The new RT 130 crane is now on the site.  He'll take over the work of the two big cranes soon.

I've had fun taking pictures of these two majestic cranes...

But we need to get used to progress.

Speaking of progress, members of the Provo South Stake manning the box told me that Moroni is arriving Tuesday morning.  Edit: A storm has moved the time to Monday about 2:30..

We'll be there!

Close

I made a quick trip to the site tonight to check on the steeple.

The slate doesn't quite cover it yet, even though the men worked hard through today's rain.

It looks like they are almost finished.

I am told Moroni will fit right through the opening at the top of the scaffolding.

It looks like I caught the sun setting, but it was actually going in and out of the clouds as it slid west.

You can look at the beautiful tabernacle, or you can look at the beautiful mountains.

Steeple and Slate

My focus today was the steeple.

I tested the capabilities of my camera because I knew you wanted to see the slate.  From the construction cam it appears to be dark patches.

The shingles are affixed to the steeple with copper nails.

Moroni cannot be raised until after the shingles are in place.  The workmen are working as hard as they can.  The white crane will hoist Moroni into place when the slate is complete.

The crane's days are numbered, as in single digits, but no one knows the exact day or hour of Moroni's coming.  The answer depends on how fast the shingles go up.  There's probably a good sacrament meeting talk in this.

The underground entrance is now identifiable.

Forms for the roof nearly cover the labyrinth area.

The doorway on the left will be for temple patrons.  The opening on the right is to the room which houses the pump for the fountain.

Four of the six pillars which will stand between the temple and the underground entrance to the pavilion have been poured.  The floor of this area will be covered with paving stones.  Brides can leave the temple at this point and walk a short distance to the pavilion.

The pavilion will be Victorian in style.  Did you remember that Queen Victoria ruled England when the tabernacle was built?  This will be a beautiful area for brides and their families.  Grooms, too.

The entrance to the pavilion is on the far left. The square footage for the pavilion below ground will be greater than the space above ground, about 3800 square feet total, not an insignificant structure.

This area marks the spot where the elevator will take visitors from the parking garage to the surface.  You recognize the rebar fins because a sump will also be here.

Scaffolding now covers the west side.

This workman drilled into the mortar to secure the scaffolding.

He placed a metal bracket exactly like the two in the upper right-hand corner.

Forms are being constructed for the building over the emergency stairwell into the west garage.

Loads of gravel were delivered this afternoon to the north lot.

The gravel is being poured into the space between Nu Skin's property and the mechanical area on the temple's west lot.  The black on the concrete walls is waterproofing, which was ongoing as I watched.  The machine that delivers the gravel is in the top center of the picture.  Notice the red crane block delivering supplies through the skylight area over the brides' room.

He's working extra hard to deliver as much as he can before he goes down next week.  This is insulation for the two basement levels of the temple.  A different type of insulation, which is sprayed, will go on the inside of the exterior walls of the underground annex.

The gravel machine will work into the evening after the waterproofing is completed on the north wall. 

Later he will fill in gravel on the far west side of the lot.  He's already put some down here.  The workmen can stand on the gravel as they waterproof the upper walls. You can see the workman on the left preparing a water mat for placement.  This mat directs the water to drain down instead of in.

I cannot begin to tell you how beautiful today was.

I can only show you.