Washington Monument Earthquake Damage: More Cracks Found By Park Service

WASHINGTON -- The National Park Service says engineers have discovered several additional cracks in the top portion of the Washington Monument.

The cracks were found Wednesday during a daylong inspection of the interior of the monument. A 4-foot crack was discovered Tuesday during an inspection of the exterior by helicopter, shortly after a 5.8-magnitude earthquake shook the nation's capital.

The monument is closed to visitors indefinitely.

Park service spokeswoman Carol Johnson could not say how many additional cracks were found but says engineers found three or four "significant" ones.

The park service is bringing in engineers from two firms with extensive experience investigating earthquake damage to conduct a more detailed inspection on Thursday.

Johnson says it's likely that the additional cracks mean the monument will take longer to repair.

Comments

[alteredstory]

02:12 PM on 08/26/2011

It's long, LONG past time to invest properly in infrastructure.

[Okieborn]

02:11 PM on 08/26/2011

The cracks are bad enough, but at first I thought it read more crack found in Washinton Monument, which would have been the reason the republican led congress is so angry at the poor folks !

[Don Quixote]

11:12 AM on 08/26/2011

The cracks in the Monument serve as a metaphor for the cracks in our once-great American empire.

[jhNY]

02:28 PM on 08/26/2011

And the cracks in the sidewalk serve as a metaphor for the wish to break your mother's back.

[johnkostrubal]

09:31 AM on 08/26/2011

Could be God telling us that it is time for a change, a real American change .

[jhNY]

02:27 PM on 08/26/2011

Could be physics too.

[honeyspcg]

02:10 AM on 08/26/2011

I think Old George is upset with he beloved Washington. George, do some good with your anger. Send the monument by way of the capitol and cut it into two. It is split anyway. Show them your anger and how displeased you are with how they have ruined your vision for your beloved country.

[Brian Gilmer]

09:01 AM on 08/26/2011

The monument is too far away for that.

[jhNY]

02:29 PM on 08/26/2011

Not for a miracle.

[Matthew Walters]

12:47 AM on 08/26/2011

Yea, I heard they were taken by surprise at this east coast fault line.

People haven’t heard of “Obama's fault line"?

They didn't know this Obama Fault line was active?

Its retroactive back many years before anyone heard his name.

For two years religious leaders have been predicting loudly that this Obama’s fault will be the end of the world.

A very prominent Rabbi announced yesterday that the earthquake was caused by homosexuality!

So……..Mother Earth is a lesbian? Too many sooth sayers and dragon slayers!

Did anyone check Nostradamus and the others that made a million predictions so we know who will get the credit for predicting it?

[H P]

11:18 AM on 08/26/2011

Just so you know. the epicenter of the earthquake was in Mineral VA. How is that important from using your logic? It is right in the middle of Eric Cantor's congressional district... interesting huh?

[Norsky]

12:26 PM on 08/26/2011

ouch.

[mac2jr]

11:23 PM on 08/25/2011

Now we all know that the cracks in the Washington Monument are directly due to the Union Contractors that built the monument not doing their jobs, and using substandard materials, whoops, that was done by the 'No Nothing Party', AKA American Party, the precursory to the Republicans.

Ref : http://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=597

[Kerry the pizza make]

11:23 PM on 08/25/2011

This is pretty old and peripheral. All insurance is a bet on life or death, and there are lots of pretty creepy permutations in every day use.

Perry has lots of sleezier and more recent stuff to answer for, including stuffing most of the boards and commissions in the state with political hacks and big donors.

[ewbrauntex]

11:52 PM on 08/25/2011

...."stuffing most of the boards and commission­s in the state with political hacks and big donors."

Say what? Matter of opinion, I suppose. Maybe Perry only followed Obama's example of "stuffing" with "political hacks and big donors."

[MidwestHeart]

08:10 PM on 08/25/2011

I almost hate to say this but it is kind of a weird coincidence that our country is losing its idealism and this happens. But then the Liberty Bell is cracked, too--the ultimate symbolism of our "liberty" not being all it was 'cracked' up to be (could not resist the pun, sorry).

[SpookyAnnya]

11:17 PM on 08/25/2011

I dont think Mother nature likes 112th Congress either

[Matthew Walters]

12:50 AM on 08/26/2011

Somebody thinks Mother nature is Gay!

http://www.rawstory.com/rawreplay/2011/08/nom-speaker-blames-east-coast-earthquake-on-gays/

[H P]

11:20 AM on 08/26/2011

I will keep saying this, Mineral Va the epicenter of the quake is right in the middle of Eric Cantor's district.. enough said.

[pablitop]

07:41 PM on 08/25/2011

Hopefully some structural engineers will find a solution to fix this.

[MidwestHeart]

08:11 PM on 08/25/2011

If the funding is still there--courtesy of our Rs.

[Brian Gilmer]

09:25 AM on 08/26/2011

It will get private money to fix it if need be.

[displaced1]

12:56 AM on 08/26/2011

Sorry, that money was used to shoot at rocks in Iraq.

[D Power]

11:19 AM on 08/26/2011

No, that money was spent on all the social programs the (D)s just had to keep in motion.

[Pool Guy]

07:34 PM on 08/25/2011

President Obama has just confirmed that the DC earthquake occurred on a rare and obscure fault-line, apparently known as "Bush's Fault". Obama also announced that the Secret Service and Maxine Waters continues an investigation of the quake's suspicious ties to the Tea Party. Conservatives however have proven that it was caused by the founding fathers rolling over in their graves. Residents of D.C. Don't be alarmed with the Earthquakes. That is just the Country shifting to the RIGHT!

[conlawpara]

09:44 PM on 08/25/2011

No, perhaps the earthquake shifted all those right coasters to our liberal, progressive left coast, even if just by an inch or too, every little bit helps.

[Norsky]

12:28 PM on 08/26/2011

Wasn't the epicenter in Cantor's district?

Makes me think.........

[harkone75]

07:31 PM on 08/25/2011

All of these problems will be fixed pretty fast as long as Obama stays on vaction.

[Patrap]

07:12 PM on 08/25/2011

Did the Levee Hold?

[AJOHMSS]

06:31 PM on 08/25/2011

This is all George Washington's fault.
If he hadn't been the first president there wouldn't be a monument to crack.

[katieg]

06:13 PM on 08/25/2011

The most important point to take from this--in the event of a public emergency, DON'T MAKE CELL PHONE CALLS. TEXT INSTEAD. Texting puts much less stress on the system and allows everyone to get in touch with their loved ones, while still allowing for emergency responders to use the cell systems if necessary.