[VIDEO] The Corvette Museum Commemorates the One Year Anniversary of the Sinkhole

0
1728

On Thursday afternoon, the National Corvette Museum marked the one year anniversary of the SkyDome Sinkhole with a press conference that culminated in the official return of the 2009 Corvette “Blue Devil” ZR1 to the display floor.

The Museum considers the one-year anniversary to be a celebration of sorts for the all the hard work and determination from the staff of the museum, the construction workers that put in long hours during the recovery and repairs, as well as the Museum members who stepped up their support during this difficult year.

The staff at the Museum, led by Executive Director Wendell Strode, has often been described as taking a bad situation and turning it into a positive outcome. The phrase “turning lemons into lemonade” has been used to describe the last year which saw record visitor numbers and new memberships despite the fact there was a large sinkhole in the SkyDome. So it was no surprise that the during the commemoration, glasses of lemonade were passed around to those in attendance.

Katie Frassinelli, the NCM’s Marketing and Communications Manager opened the event and introduced employee Betty Hardison who is the NCM’s Library and Archives Manager. Betty received the first call that fatefull morning and was the first employee inside the SkyDome. Betty still gets choked up remembering that morning and she shared the experience during the celebration.

Next up was Zach Massey who is the project manager for the Museum’s construction team that is repairing the sinkhole. Zach gave an update to the everything that had been done up to this point. He believes that construction should be done sometime this summer and he detailed the work that is being done to ensure the integrity of the facility for the future.

The Corvette Museum Commemorates the One Year Anniversary of the Sinkhole
Photo Credit: National Corvette Museum

Zack also gave the answer to the NCM’s contest which was held to guess the amount of stone it took to fill the sinkhole. The correct answer was 3,976.98 tons of crushed limestone was used and the winner was Chris Conn who scored the “Resurrection” print by Dana Forrester which was signed by the artist as well as autographed by the construction team.

Finally, the camera pulled back and the construction managers were tasked for revealing the 2009 Corvette ZR1 that was the first Corvette to be restored from the damage and returned to the museum. The Corvette ZR1 now resides back on display for all to see.

The Corvette Museum Commemorates the One Year Anniversary of the Sinkhole

In the official press release, the Museum relayed their thanks to everyone involved over the last year:

“We are thankful no one was hurt, that Chubb Insurance has covered the bulk of the cost of repairs to the building and cars (and have been wonderful to work with), that our construction team has treated the building and the cars with love and respect – meticulously completing each step in the recovery and repair process, and we are thankful for all of you who supported us – whether you volunteered, donated, visited, promoted us or any other way you showed your support!

A replay of the one year commemoration of the NCM Sinkhole can be seen here:


Source:
National Corvette Museum

Related:
Corvette Museum Marks One Year Anniversary of the Sinkhole that Swallowed Eight Corvettes
[VIDEO] Win a Dana Forrester Print in the Corvette Museum’s Sinkhole Contest
[VIDEO] The Sinkhole at the Corvette Museum has been Filled

 



-