Second piece lifted off broken down Bertha
Mar 22, 2015, 8:17 AM | Updated: Mar 23, 2015, 10:21 am
The second of four pieces has been removed from Bertha, the world’s largest tunneling machine stuck under Seattle’s waterfront.
Crews spent several weeks taking apart Bertha’s cutter head to prepare for the lifts. The first piece was removed Thursday afternoon and the second Saturday evening.
Once both the upper-right and upper-left portions of the machine are lifted out of the pit next, crews will remove Bertha’s cutter head and main drive unit. The pieces weigh 2,000 tons combined.
Seattle Tunnel Partners hopes to repair the damaged cutter head by late spring.
Bertha is expected to resume tunneling in August.
The machine broke down in December 2013. The project to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct is about two years behind schedule.
