Damaged Stone Pinnacles Removed from Washington National Cathedral

Thursday, crews worked through a light rain and heavy fog to remove a two-ton section of the pinnacle on the southeast corner of the Washington National Cathedral's central tower. Officials said they are confident they can secure the structure once the fourth pinnacle is removed later next week and a few additional areas are stabilized. large sections of the cathedral and safety concerns prompted the decision to remove unstable stones.

As the four damaged stone pinnacles are removed from the tower, stone masons have begun the task of evaluating what can be salvaged, what can be repaired and what needs to be replaced. So far the team has removed 45 pieces of stone from the central tower, but another section will require an additional 160 piece or so to come down as well, according to head stone mason, Joe Alonso.

"It's phenomenal, the amount of damage," remarked Alonso.

He expects repairs to take years, perhaps a decade

"I never dreamed I'd be reconstructing parts of this building" said Alonso, who has been a stone mason at the cathedral for 26 years.

Before the safety corridor of fences can be moved and the cathedral can officially , the team of stone masons, engineers and contractors will build more scaffolding to secure remaining areas of concern.

The same team of rappellers who inspected the Washington Monument will come to the cathedral to examine the west side of the building.

Once the cathedral stone masons have an idea of what will need to be replaced, they will travel to Ind. to purchase new limestone to make the repairs needed.

"There's plenty of limestone in Indiana" said Alonso.

While there may be enough physical resources, financial resources could pose a huge challenge to the project.

Cathedral spokesperson, Richard Weinberg told reporters that though they announced last week that the institution in the next year, that figure was in no way comprehensive for all repairs.

"There's no way to know at this time" how much money the whole project will take, explained Weinberg.

The cause has received support locally and from around the country.

"The outpouring has been extraordinary," said Weinberg.

The cathedral will reopen Nov. 12 in time for the consecration of the Rev. Dr. Mariann Edgar Budde as the ninth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington. Regular Sunday services will begin the following Sunday.