In December 2001, Italy’s Leaning Tower of Pisa reopened after an 11-year effort to fix that famous tilt…
During the 1990s, engineers and scientists watched anxiously as the Leaning Tower’s tilt worsened year by year – raising the very real possibility that it could eventually topple over.
A complex €27 million stabilisation project reduced the tower’s tilt by around… 17 inches (45cm), and after 11 years of work, the tower could be opened to the public.
“The whole town was decorated with candles. There were many parties,” remembers Nunziante Squeglia, professor of geotechnics at the University of Pisa.
Nunziante is part of a group which constantly monitors the tower and it’s 3.97-degree lean to the south. It’s a lifetime’s work.
“The tower represents our life,” he says. “Which is always unstable!”
The Leaning Tower of Pisa was built at the end of the twelfth century, and its problems started straight away.
“The tower started to lean at the beginning of its construction because of the extreme softness of the soil… almost all buildings in Pisa are inclined,” says Nunziante.
He says this even includes the school of engineering…
Over the years, the tower leaned more and more to the south. But what made it dangerous, also made it famous. Which raised a problem. If the lean was taken from the Leaning Tower – would people come and see it?
In 1989, a tower elsewhere in Italy collapsed, killing four people. Seeing this, the authorities took action, closing the Leaning Tower to visitors.
“The situation was very worrying,” says Nunziante. But it turned out the solution was simple. Without touching the tower, 37 cubic metres of soil were extracted from its northern, tall side – and gravity did the rest.
“At the beginning, there were many nightmares,” says Nunziante. But the 11-year-job paid off.
A 17-inch reduction in the lean may not sound much, but it’s secured the tower’s standing for an estimated 200–300 more years, so visitors from around the world can continue to enjoy its quirky beauty.
And Nunziante is proud to be part of its history. “She’s a friend,” he says of the tower. “She’s stable.”
suzgo chingati 