 (PISA, Italia, Wednesday May 16 09:39 PM EDT) ABC News By Tony Eufinger ABCNEWS.com  Construction workers remove steel cables known as "suspenders" from the base of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. (Fabio Muzzi/AP Photo) In Italy, workers are removing the final steel suspenders from the famous Tower of Pisa after three years of renovations. Engineers who toiled for more than a decade to stabilize the leaning Tower of Pisa are standing tall. Today they are set to finish peeling away the last of two sets of steel suspenders supporting Italy's famous monument. The cables were secured in 1998 as part of a bold, apparently successful plan to straighten the tower. Some had feared the icon of Italian culture might begin to slip as workers excavated the soil under its foundation. 'Extraordinarily Close' to Collapse Although the Tower of Pisa has always leaned since its construction began in 1173, the most severe threat to its stability did not come until the 19th century. By adding a walkway close to the monument, engineers unintentionally shifted the soil underneath the tower. This seemingly harmless act gradually caused the lean to worsen by several inches. The Italian government formed a commission to find a way to prevent any further slide. "It's not often widely appreciated that the tower was literally on the point of falling over," says John Burland, a professor of soil mechanics at London's Imperial College who worked on the project. "Anything we did was extremely delicate." But throughout the repair process, the tower proved strong enough to stand on its own. Or to be more precise, Burland points out, the tower's foundation was solid enough to hold up against the strain of the latest modifications, thanks to some grouting work done in the 1930s. The steel suspenders were attached to giant winches buried 100 yards into the ground in case the tower slid further. In the end they were never needed. Timeline of the Tower 1173: Construction begins on the Tower of Pisa. Evidence suggests the tower began to lean soon after, but historians discount theories that the original architects intended for the tower to lean. 1185: Experts believe construction was interrupted at the fourth order, or level, of the tower. Construction probably resumed in 1231, only to be suspended again in 1292. 1360: Tommaso Pisano completes the tower, adding a belfry and making other minor corrections. Late 1830s: Nearby excavation work begins to destabilize the tower's base. 1990: Italian government closes tower to tourists over fears it is leaning too far. June 6, 2001: Official inauguration ceremony for the leaning Tower of Pisa . November 2001: The Tower is set to reopen to tourists and climbers for $12 admission. Guides will lead groups of 30 at time. Beyond 2300: Next time engineers believe the tower will need a major overhaul. SOURCES: Tower of Pisa official Web site, BBC and Professor John Burland A Big Sigh of Relief "It's a little like running a marathon," Burland says of saving the tower. "You're concentrating so hard that before you know it you're crossing the finishing line." Burland acknowledges the nature of the project put an extraordinary amount of pressure on him and his colleagues. Tourists are more likely to notice they will be able to climb the monument for the first time in a decade than the 16-inch difference in the tower's lean. The official reopening ceremony is scheduled for June 16, with the first guided tours planned for November. |
 Yahoo/Reuters (PISA, Italia, May 15, 2001 Posted: 4:29 PM EDT)  Workers remove the "suspenders" from the Tower of Pisa. REUTERS/Carlo Fabbri  CNN.com Europe Tower of Pisa Nears Re-opening The steel suspenders were not needed during the excavation work PISA, Italy -- The leaning Tower of Pisa is almost ready to be re-opened to the public more than 10 years after it was closed. Excavation work to stabilise the tower has been completed and steel suspenders, which had been attached to the tower, were removed on Tuesday. The excavation work took longer than expected, but the tower is due to be ready for an inauguration ceremony on June 16, project overseer Paolo Heiniger said. The 340-foot-long cables had been secured to the tower in 1998 as a precaution in case it needed to be pulled back up while the soil under its foundation was being excavated. Anchored to giant winches dug into the ground about 100 yards from the tower, the suspenders did not need to be used. The tower had been closed more than a decade ago, when officials feared it was beginning to lean so much that it might topple over. When work began the tower leaned 6 degrees, or 13 feet, off the perpendicular on its south side. By removing a small amount of soil, the tower has settled better and now leans about 16 inches less -- nearly the tilt it had 300 years ago. The decrease in lean is not enough for the naked eye to detect but sufficient to stabilise the monument, experts have said. In the past weeks, workers have also removed about 800 tons of lead counterweights placed at the base of the tower to stabilise it while work was underway. The tower started leaning when the soil beneath it started shifting shortly after work to construct it began in 1173. |
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