It's real.
Posted on 08/24/2011 7:38:09 AM PDT by markomalley
The Washington National Cathedral sustained significant damage in the earthquake that hit D.C. on Tuesday afternoon.
Damage included arch displacement, cracking, falling limestone and rotating pinnacles on the Cathedral's neogothic towers.
National Cathedral Head Mason Joe Alonso estimated a piece weighing about 3,000 pounds toppled from the central tower. He called the damage to that section of the Cathedral "mind boggling."
A link to video of Alonso detailing the damage was tweeted by the National Cathedral on Wednesday morning.
"A lot of what fell, we're fortunate that it fell in toward the roof and not out toward the streets," Alonso said in the video.
National Cathedral staff tweeted out information about damage sustained by the historic building on Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning following the 5.8 magnitude earthquake felt across a large portion of the East Coast on Tuesday afternoon.
One of the first questions answered through Twitter may have brought a sigh of relief to fans of the sci-fi trilogy Star Wars. "We've checked, and Darth Vader appears to be okay," staff tweeted.
The Star Wars villain is one of the many gargoyles included on the northwest tower of the Cathedral.
The National Cathedral is the fourth tallest structure in Washington, D.C. Its foundation was laid in 1907.
I was shocked to learn that the Natl. Cathedral was built according to medieval building methods — no steel bracing, etc. — just stone on stone. This would never be allowed in CA. There will be aftershocks for weeks, and it would be wise to stay away from buildings like that.
I talked to my daughter last night. She is a teacher in a private school in Richmond and they are in session already. Much of yesterday was spent reviewing fire drills, etc., so the earthquake was just a natural part of the planned day.
BUT, they seemed to have no rational plan on how to deal with it. I asked if she put her kids under their desks, and she pointed out that they have no desks. (She teaches music, and the first sign of the quake was that all of the chimes in her classroom started ringing.)
But the school ordered the students to leave the classroom and line up in the hall on the side where there are no lockers. My daughter’s class found that their spot was already taken by another class and they had to line up on the locker side — bad idea. I’m sure that there are going to be teacher meetings today on a new plan. I hope that the first thing they do is to bolt those lockers to the wall. That would be a cheap precaution.
My SIL’s business (a major CC company) was just chaos. Employees were told to evacuate the cafeteria and then were ordered back in. Nobody had a plan. I hope they get it together.
My granddaughter (on the 3rd floor of her private school) fell off her chair during the quake. My grandson (who was at home because his school has not started yet) didn’t know about the quake. His excuse? “I felt the house moving, but we don’t have quakes in Virginia, so I knew it was not a quake.”
The main disruption is that nobody could make a phone call. All the networks were jammed.
I believe that it is episcopalian.
It’s true. The churches built in “official capacity” by the country are usually in Episcopal fashion. So is the Cadet Chapel at West Point.
It’s Episcopalian.
It's real.
What to say? Medieval does as medieval is ...
Actually, the roof of the National Cathedral is held up by steel I beams.... IE modern construction (by 1920s standards, when it was mostly planned and built). Certain elements (spires, flying butresses, etc.) were however, built by the only standards we have for such structures, that of medieval cathedrals.
Considering the vast majority of medieval-era cathedrals still stand—after 800+ years, of wars, fires, and violence.... not a bad method of construction, IMHO. Of course most of Europe, like the USA’s East, doesn’t normally have earthquakes.
Why?
“Wrong.
It is the Episcopal cathedral.
The Roman Catholic Cathedral is the Cathedral of St Matthew, located in Georgetown.”
Thanks Mark.
his is the Episcopal National Cathedral.
The Catholic one is entitled the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.
Now does Darth Vader make sense — it’s Episcopal.
You are mistaken, Doulos1, it is an Episcopal Church — Clinton would sometimes go there.
But you live back there somewhere!
A little heads-up from the Almighty, perhaps?
I thought this was THE Catholic Church in DC.
http://www.nationalshrine.com/site/c.osJRKVPBJnH/b.4719297/k.BF65/Home.htm
Caddyshack gopher on the right?
In a sense, yes. But the cathedral for the archdiocese of Washington is St. Mathew’s. The National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception is not under the direct control of the Archdiocese.
It is your right to think as you please.
We have no national cathedral because we have no national religion.
The owners of the "National Cathedral" are free to name their building as they see fit. Fed.gov does not hold copyright on the adjective "national". Neither do you.
It is the Roman Catholic cathedral in nation’s capital.
Making up your "facts" as you go along gives you the appearance of being foolish. Neither the "Roman" Catholics (whoever they may be) nor any other sort of Catholics have anything to do with the National Cathedral.
Wrongo—it’s Episcopalian and I resent our tax money financing that un-American, anti-Christian so-called religion. I know, I attended ONE service there—there will never be a second.
Darth keeps the rebels at bay.
I bet no one remembers the last time the GOSPEL was uttered inside those walls.
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