Pentagon Construction Ahead of Sept. 11, 2002, Completion Goal
By Rudi Williams
American Forces Press Service
"Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our
biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of
America." President George W. Bush, Sept. 11, 2001
WASHINGTON, Jan. 31, 2002 -- Workers are ahead of schedule
in repairing the huge hole sliced out of the Pentagon Sept.
11, 2001, by a terrorist-hijacked airliner.
Brett D. Eaton, communications director of the Pentagon
Renovation Program, said 100 to 200 employees a week have
been able to return to the building as fast as workers
rebuild sections. More than 1,000 employees so far are back
from leased office space in surrounding communities, he
said.
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Renovation plans call for this engraved
stone to be placed at the crash site during dedication
ceremonies on Sept. 11, 2002. The same quarry that produced
the stones to build the Pentagon 60 years ago is again
providing stone for current reconstruction efforts. Quarry
workers at the Byee Stone Company in Ellettsville, Ind.
signed the stone in honor of those killed when the hijacked
airliner struck the building Sept. 11. Signatures also
represent some of the hundreds of construction workers
currently rebuilding the Pentagon. Photo by Rudi
Williams.
(Click photo for screen-resolution image; high-resolution image available.)
(Additional photos) |
More than 24,000 military and civilian employees fill the
Pentagon every workday. Thousands were displaced when the
airliner slammed into the building, killing 125 people on
the ground, Eaton noted.
"By the one-year anniversary, Sept. 11, 2002, people will
be able to look out of their office windows on the E Ring
deck to watch … a dedication ceremony that the Army Corps
of Engineers are planning for a memorial," Eaton said.
Until about a month ago, crews were working around the
clock, seven days a week, slowly knitting and weaving
together the Pentagon's broken wings. Now, they work 20
hours per day, six days a week, with Sundays off.
"This is fast-track-type work. We're working two 10-hour
shifts, six days a week," said Keith Curtin, a construction
superintendent. "We have many more people than you normally
have on a job this size trying to get the work done as
quickly as possible." About 700 workers are on site during
the day and 300 at night, he noted.
Curtin and other workers started renovating the 60-year-old
Pentagon wedge by wedge in 1997. They no sooner stepped
back to admire their first rebuilt wedge when the crashed
airliner demolished it. The building withstood the attack
as designed -- strength and security features added to the
renovated section are credited with saving many Pentagon
workers' lives, he said.
Curtin said the goal now is to rebuild the wedge as quickly
as possible." Their deadline is Sept. 11, the first
anniversary of the terrorist attack.
"I think I speak for the entire renovation program and all
the contractors when I say how great a feeling it is to be
a small part of rebuilding the nation's military
headquarters," Eaton said. "It's a feeling of pride we all
have for being able to contribute any way we can. Everyone
here realizes they're a part of history. They're helping to
rebuild a national icon."
Congress recently provided additional money to speed the
entire Pentagon renovation project. The scheduled
completion has moved up four years to 2010, Eaton noted.
When the outermost wall of the destroyed wedge is replaced,
the Pentagon's exterior will look almost exactly as it did
before the terrorist attack, Eaton noted. The interior,
once again, is being rebuilt with reinforced concrete and
other safety and security measures that will make it
stronger and more modern than the rest of the building, he
added.
The Pentagon cost $50 million to build in the early 1940s.
The total renovation cost now, including rebuilding the
damaged area a second time, is about $3 billion. Once
completely renovated, the Pentagon will have all new
mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems, elevators and
escalators, cable management systems, improved fire and
life safety systems and flexible ceiling, lighting and
partition systems.
A large sign is being erected at the crash site that reads:
"'Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our
biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of
America.' President George W. Bush, Sept. 11, 2001."
| Smoke and flames rise over the Pentagon as
firefighters work to put the flames out following the crash
of a hijacked airliner into the building Sept. 11, 2001.
Photo by Jim Garamone.
(Click photo for screen-resolution image; high-resolution image available.) |
| A worker at the Pentagon rebuilding site
prepares a coil of rebar to reinforce concrete columns.
Construction on the site is three weeks ahead of schedule.
Photo by Rudi Williams.
(Click photo for screen-resolution image; high-resolution image available.) |
| Brett D. Eaton, communications director of
the Pentagon Renovation Program, views a sign being erected
at the Pentagon crash site that reads: "'Terrorist attacks
can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but
they cannot touch the foundation of America.' President
George W. Bush, Sept. 11, 2001." Photo by Rudi Williams.
(Click photo for screen-resolution image; high-resolution image available.) |
| Construction superintendent Keith Curtin,
left, talks to reporter Warren Lee of the American Forces
Radio and Television Service. Photo by Rudi Williams.
(Click photo for screen-resolution image; high-resolution image available.) |
| Three of the five stories of the Pentagon
wedge damaged in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack have
been rebuilt. More than 1,000 displaced defense personnel
have returned to their desks from leased office space in
local communities. Photo by Rudi Williams.
(Click photo for screen-resolution image; high-resolution image available.) |
| A workman helps piece together the area of
the Pentagon damaged in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist
attack on the building. Photo by Rudi Williams.
(Click photo for screen-resolution image; high-resolution image available.) |
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