Betcha y’all didn’t know 250

[953 nut 68,403]

September 7, 1977, In Washington, President Jimmy Carter and Panamanian dictator Omar Torrijos sign a treaty agreeing to transfer control of the Panama Canal from the United States to Panama at the end of the 20th century. The Panama Canal Treaty also authorized the immediate abolishment of the Canal Zone, a 10-mile-wide, 40-mile-long U.S.-controlled area that bisected the Republic of Panama. Many in Congress opposed giving up control of the Panama Canal—an enduring symbol of U.S. power and technological prowess—but America’s colonial-type administration of the strategic waterway had long irritated Panamanians and other Latin Americans.

[Handy Don 17,285]

We visited Panama in July.

If you only remember it as the home of the original canal, there is a lot to add to your knowledge.

It is a country working hard as a financial hub, as operator of a globally critical infrastructure component (recently massively upgraded for larger ships but facing constraints due to greatly diminished rainfall), as a still-learning democracy tackling extreme wealth disparity, as a shelter for indigenous people of Central America, and as a reluctant spectator to drug and human trafficking. So many contrasts. 

[Ed Kennell 46,912]

30 minutes ago, Handy Don said:

critical infrastructure component (recently massively upgraded for larger ships

I was there when the new locks were under construction.      

I stood and watched in awe as those eight electric locomotive mules on cogged railroads with computer controlled winches and steel cables kept  the large ships centered as they moved thru the locks. with only a couple feet of clearance.

 

T

 

This was one of the deadliest projects ever attempted by the USA with 500 lives lost for every mile completed.   I am thankful the USA has regained control of this critical structure

 

 

 

Edited 11 hours ago by Ed Kennell

[Handy Don 17,285]

We watched a large tanker move through a lock. Like watching a well choreographed dance!

The entire canal is fresh water, meeting the oceans only at the first and last locks. Gatun Lake not only provides the route for ships, it is the source of hydro-electric generation that powers the entire operation and beyond. Hence the lower water level not only reduces the number of transits allowed (at months-in-advance fees ranging from $2,000 for small vessels to $1M for large ones and up to $3.7M for a “last minute” reservation) but reduces generation capacity.

To offset this, Panama has aggressively installed solar and wind generation and is working on improved electrical distribution infrastructure. 

Edited 11 hours ago by Handy Don

[pfrederi 21,034]

All of our older warships were limited to 108'  beam as that was the max you could get through the original locks...Created some design challenges...

[SylvanLakeWH 32,100]

9 hours ago, Ed Kennell said:

I was there when the new locks were under construction.

First use of a trail cam to monitor a construction site- I think I see you Ed in the bottom right corner of the picture...? 

 

[Ed Kennell 46,912]

17 minutes ago, SylvanLakeWH said:

I think I see you Ed

Thanks, now you got me started.         

This reminds me of a problem I had when I was still working.

One of my 10 ton 600hp dynos lost a bearing and needed to be removed from the lab for rebuild.

The problem was the dyno was installed before the roof was put on the building.

I had a 20 ton bridge crane but the top of the dyno was above the crane hook.

When I told the VP I would have to remove the roof and get a mobile crane, he stared at me for a few minutes and replied,

If 10,000 Egyptians  and a couple hundred donkeys can build a pyramid, you can remove that dyno without removing the roof.

He was right, with four 25 ton chain falls mounted to the crane bridge I was able to lift it out of the centering joint and lower it enough to get it rigged to the crane hook.