>> NARRATOR: Today, on<i> Mega</i> <i> Movers:</i> >> Give me a hold for this jack. >> NARRATOR: Ships are meant for the water, but this 150-tonner is stuck on land. >> I don't think they've ever moved a boat quite like this one. >> NARRATOR: The battle is to sail it over muddy fields... >> Rain could affect our ability to safely move the boat. >> NARRATOR: ...across one mile of asphalt... >> Watch my dolly. Don't let me cut a tire on a piece of plate now. >> NARRATOR: ...and through city streets. >> Watch the wheelhouse. I got about five foot. >> NARRATOR: ...while fighting violent storms. >> It couldn't be a worse case scenario for us. <font color="#FFFF00"> Captioning sponsored by</font> <font color="#FFFF00"> 44 BLUE PRODUCTIONS</font> >> NARRATOR: Berthed in the harbor of Long Beach, California, the RMS<i> Queen Mary</i> is a huge tourist attraction. Today, it serves as a museum, hotel and filming location. >> LEONARD JOSEPH: The<i> Queen</i> <i> Mary</i> is a huge ship, certainly by transatlantic steamer standards. It was a very luxurious ship. She is 1,019 h feet long, 118 feet wide, and draws 39 h feet of depth. >> NARRATOR: History has taught us that not everything stays where it was built. So we pose this hypothetical question to mega movers: What if rising sea levels brought on by global warming forced the <i> Queen Mary</i> to have to be moved overland in the future? Could it be done? >> JOSEPH: I can't imagine that there was anything approaching this size of a marine move that's ever happened in the past. The cost for this kind of move, I would think would be in the hundreds of millions of dollars. >> NARRATOR: The traditional method of lifting a ship out of the water is to use cradles and cranes at several sections of the hull. >> JOSEPH: However, you are now asking the ship hull to take large point loads and large pressure points. And an historic ship may not be very happy with the situation, and if it starts crumpling and failing, you've got a problem. >> NARRATOR: A huge problem. The hull of the ship could cave in under the pressure of the cradles lifting it. But there is a better way. >> JOSEPH: I would see kind of a moving aqueduct system, which you could think of as a rolling bassinet. >> NARRATOR: The rolling bassinet would be built right up against the shoreline. >> JOSEPH: I was picturing a bathtub 1,100 feet long, 125 feet wide and about 50 feet deep, perhaps a little bit deeper if you want extra freeboard in the event of, uh, small slope changes along the way. You don't want the water sloshing out. That would leave you a few feet clear all around. You would have cushions all around and a few feet clear underneath so that actually divers could go underneath. >> NARRATOR: The bassinet would have a series of vertical ribs forming a U-shape frame around its base and walls. >> JOSEPH: These U-shaped frames, if they're spaced every six, seven, eight feet apart, would be up to five feet deep and weigh about 500 pounds per linear foot. So they would be the guts of the bassinet that keep the walls from flopping outward. And they also would be the strong points at which the wheels could be attached beneath. >> NARRATOR: The bassinet would be propelled by motorized dolly wheels. >> JOSEPH: So to move this bassinet around on rubber tires would require a mere 80,000 rubber tire dollies. >> NARRATOR: Now the challenge is how do you get this massive ship inside the bassinet? >> JOSEPH: I would construct walls on land right adjacent to the ocean entrance. Also construct high walls out into the ocean surrounding the ship to create a boot-shaped or step-bottomed box. And then by pumping in seawater, the ship would be raised in elevation until it would clear over this higher level, shallower part of the box, towed it into the shallower part of the box, the back of that shallower box closed off. And then we have a ship in a bassinet. It's in an enclosed bathtub. Once you have the ship in its bassinet, it's behaving exactly the way it did in the ocean. It's very well-protected, very happy in its condition. >> NARRATOR: This magnificent ocean liner now heads out, putting a whole new spin on taking a cruise. >> JOSEPH: This water-filled bassinet weighs about 200,000 tons. That's as much as a skyscraper. So you have to picture a 23-story building rolling down the highway. >> NARRATOR: Ferrying large ships across land isn't the stuff of maritime legends and salty sea stories. Mega movers past and present have attempted such voyages. Today, in the historic city of Charleston, South Carolina, this 150-ton, 140-foot-long schooner-- the<i> Spirit of South</i> <i> Carolina--</i> has to be moved a mile from where it's being built to the harbor. >> MARK BAYNE: The<i> Frances</i> <i> Elizabeth</i> was the inspiration for this boat. I found the plans in the Smithsonian Institute from the <i> Frances Elizabeth</i> which was built in the 1870s here in Charleston, almost on this exact site. And we sent the plans to Tri- Coastal Marine along with our wish list of what we'd like to do with the boat and how many students we'd like to carry. We knew it would be big, but we didn't know exactly how big. She's about twice as long as the<i> Frances Elizabeth.</i> We're about 91 on deck and she was about 57 on deck-- much narrower, much shallower. >> NARRATOR: This ship will be used as an educational tall ship, taking students up and down the East Coast. >> BAYNE: She's sort of a Victorian design with 21st century technology. We've got watertight bulkheads, we've got two diesel engines, we've got a lead keel for ballast. The original boat would have never had any of that. She's definitely going to float. She might not even leak. >> NARRATOR: After six years and $4 million, the time has come to launch her. But how? J.E. Oswalt & Sons have been moving mansions, swing bridges and 200-ton transformers for over 70 years. It's an operation involving the entire family, headed by brothers David and Gary Oswalt. >> DAVID OSWALT: A lot of my friends are involved with this thing, and that's how I got involved in moving it. I think it's an amazing feat they pulled this thing off and got it done. And it's been 15 years since we've moved a wooden boat that somebody built. All right, we're good. Let's go to the next. A lot of the methods have changed. Everything now is all hydraulics. When my grandfather and them started in business in '27, they had a mule with a capstan, and the mule walked around the capstan and turned the cable and rolled the billings along. >> GARY OSWALT: David and I are third generation. And on this job here, we, we, each one of us have our son here. And so we've got the fourth generation working on this job today. It feels good. >> NARRATOR: They only have six days to get the ship to the harbor and set into the water for a planned dedication ceremony with the mayor. If that weren't pressure enough, there's some daunting challenges standing in their way: one, tough route; two, unpredictable storms. >> DAVID: You coming this way? All right, come on. It's not an everyday project that comes along. It is a challenge to get this boat out of here and carry it over there. All right, let him get out the way. >> NARRATOR: To move the ship, they must first place two main beams on either side of the ship. Then, four crossbeams are inserted. Next, dolly wheels are rolled in, and four posts are welded in for support. A truck will haul the ship to the harbor, where it will be lowered by floating cranes into the water. >> DAVID: Good right there. >> Close them up? >> DAVID: No, good right there. >> Coming down. >> DAVID: Coming down. >> BAYNE: The moving process is fairly involved. We've got the best mover we could ever have in Oswalt House Moving. But I don't think they've ever moved a boat quite like this one and none of their cargo is ever more precious to us than the<i> Spirit of South Carolina.</i> >> NARRATOR: There's something coming. A violent storm is headed right this way. >> BAYNE: The weather forecast is extremely high winds over 30 knots, hail, a lot of rain and lightning and thunder. >> NARRATOR: To prepare for the storm, David calls for plywood to be laid down to protect the ground from becoming muddy and unstable. But the even bigger concern is what could happen when the ship reaches dock. If the storm hits, the swells could kick up and send the <i> Spirit of South Carolina</i> crashing into the harbor. >> NARRATOR: In the coastal city of Charleston, South Carolina, what looks like a ship from the past is preparing to move towards its future-- a future that right now looks stormy. >> TONY ARROW: The forecast for today is that there will be some very heavy rain and potentially thunderstorms coming through. The issues with that for us moving the boat are: one, if the winds are really high, it could affect our ability to safely move the boat. And two, the amount of rain that comes down could really soften up the dirt fields that we're moving across. >> NARRATOR: Rushing to beat the oncoming storms, they place the two 84-foot steel I beams. >> DAVID: Nothing sitting on the stock shelf to go move the boat, but you've about got to assemble a carrying rig for the boat. You've got to assemble the transporter under it. I mean, it's got to be everything detailed to that boat. >> NARRATOR: Each beam weighs 311 pounds per foot-- that's 52,248 pounds in total. After they are moved level with the ship's keel... >> DAVID: All right, that's good. Let's go to the next. >> NARRATOR: ...four crossbeams are inserted... >> DAVID: All right, James. >> NARRATOR: ...and secured to the mains. >> DAVID: The boat is basically being carried at four points under the keel, and those are called the carry beams. So we had to put on the Dewey dag rods, and there's 32 rods on each side of the boat going down to those carry beams. And the whole boat is basically hanging on those rods. And once we get the carry beams in, then we start wedging the boat out and shimming it out. Everything on there has got to be shimmed out all through the hull of the boat so the boat doesn't tip over. >> GARY: Don't let it roll over. >> Hold it, hold it right there... >> GARY: Push it off. >> All right, good. >> NARRATOR: While David's team wedge the boat tight to the supports... >> BAYNE: All this got good spaces. Frame, frame, frame. >> DAVID: Yeah. >> NARRATOR: ...Mark's crew is still putting their final touches to the ship itself. Electrical work, sanding, and painting must be perfect for the launch. However, their wooden framework will be another obstacle for the movers, especially now that David is setting the dollies in place. >> DAVID: All the weight is basically in the bottom of the boat. The engineer says the boat weighs 150 tons. It would only take really four dollies to move the boat, but we've got to put ten under it to satisfy the weight loading on the dock. We had to get the axle weights down. There's eight tires on each dolly and each dolly has got a 50-ton jack in it. >> NARRATOR: Working in tight quarters, they have to be careful not to puncture the hull. >> Fifteen. >> DAVID: The first four dollies were pretty easy because we could get to it, but the last six-- we've got to snake every one of them in around all the framework and the bracing that's holding the boat up, and we can't take the bracing out till we get the boat shifted and get it jacked up. >> NARRATOR: Suddenly, a problem with a dolly. >> DAVID: One of the dollies had a seal broke at the top-- wiper seal-- so we just took that dolly out and put another one in. All right, hold that. Move the post. But it was the hardest dolly to get in of all. Hold it. Don't push this around anymore like that one. >> NARRATOR: With all ten dollies in place, the ship is bolted to them and four posts are welded in for support. The movers are not just watching the ship but also the oncoming weather. >> BAYNE: Some of the problems we've had getting ready to move this ship is basically that we built a boat in a muddy field and a little bit of rain turns into a whole lot of mud right where we're at, and we've got to get out of here and across part of a public field that's also a mud hole to get to hard pavement. So between that and the inclement weather that's on the way, we're really trying to beat the clock and get out of here before the weather gets here. >> DAVID: That's the problem. We've got a moderate chance of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes this afternoon with hail, so at about 2:00 or 3:00 this afternoon, we've got to make a decision whether we're coming out of the shed with it or not. >> NARRATOR: The technique for moving ships over land has evolved with the invention of trucks, tractors, and cranes, but much of what modern-day mega movers learned came from studying the techniques of the most powerful mega movers of the last millennium-- the Vikings, masters of moving mighty ships over land. >> TIMOTHY LYNCH: A typical Viking ship, clinker-built, could run upwards of ten tons, so you're talking about a rather sizable vessel, one that was rather bulky and difficult to move. The historical record suggests that all Viking craft were designed to be moved overseas as well as over land. >> NARRATOR: In 1999, a team of British and Norwegian sailors tested some popular theories of how they perfected their ship- moving skills. They transported a replica Viking ship to the Shetland Islands, an important overland shortcut used by Vikings to get from the North Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. >> LYNCH: To move a vessel over land, a variety of techniques and steps needed to be followed. First, all of the crew and all of the movable objects were removed from the vessel to make it as light as possible. Ballast stones were moved, cargo holds were emptied, and the vessel was then made as light in the water as possible. At the same time, to cut down on friction and to make the transit as easy as possible, a series of greased logs, through cod liver oil... >> It smells very bad-- cod liver, lying for four months. >> LYNCH: ...would be used to make this overland portage less difficult. >> NARRATOR: A small metal peg was then inserted in the keel and ropes were looped around either end of the bar. >> She's going to go, definitely all the way. Definitely, yeah, definitely. (man laughs) >> LYNCH: Brute strength would be used to pull the vessel. >> NARRATOR: Brute strength, as in a team of volunteers. On signal, they pulled... >> Pull! (people talking indistinctly) >> Heave! ...but didn't get very far. >> The rope slipped off the bar, so nothing broke as such. It just slipped. >> NARRATOR: It was on to plan "B"-- running the rope right through the hole in the keel. >> LYNCH: This presented a lot of difficulties when you're taking the vessel out of the water and trying to portage it over land. >> Heave! >> What broke? >> The keel went. >> NARRATOR: The rope sliced right through the keel. Time for plan "C"-- wrapping the ropes around the stern. Scientists braced for another failure... ...but they were pleasantly shocked to see the nine-ton vessel clear the water, glide 100 yards across land... ...and slide gently into the Atlantic Ocean. Just the same way the Vikings probably moved their ships more than 1,000 years ago. >> DAVID: This is lunch. Nabs and a soda-- that's a South Carolina cocktail. >> NARRATOR: Unlike the Vikings, who moved their ships across land in the worst of storms, David Oswalt is faced with a modern-day mega mover dilemma-- safety. A decision must be made. Either move the ship across the field before the oncoming storm or keep it under its tent. >> DAVID: We got some bad rain coming. We were just looking at it. It's quite a good bit. We'll see, but we're on the wheels, we're ready. >> NARRATOR: The crew and movers believe it's now or never. Last second preparations are made to finally pull the ship out of its home of the past six years. >> BAYNE: Everything's loose now. None of the wood's holding anything up. It's all on the wheels and the steel. >> NARRATOR: To help the 150-ton ship over the muddy field, a path is built of steel plates, sheets of plywood, and fiberglass mats. A tractor and a truck called a prime mover will be used to pull the ship out of its tent. (rhythmic beeping) As the rain starts to come down, David gives the signal they've all been waiting for. >> DAVID: Tim, you ready? >> TIM (over radio): Yeah... >> DAVID: All right, let's ease forward just a little bit. (horn blows) (cheering) Tim, you're looking good on the right. >> NARRATOR: Is it a decision they'll regret? >> DAVID: Okay. (thunder rumbles) >> NARRATOR: In Charleston, South Carolina, a violent storm struck during the night. >> GARY: Last night, it rained a lot, and so we kind of worry about that. We had some high winds, too. >> NARRATOR: Fortunately, the <i> Spirit of South Carolina</i> escaped without damage, but the dirt path it needs to cross is now a mud pit. >> DAVID: Put the mat right in here. >> NARRATOR: The hope is that adding more steel plates and fiberglass mats will keep the dolly wheels from getting stuck in the mud. >> DAVID: We're ready. Got to lay that plate. Can't go nowhere without a plate. We'll probably go over toward the street with it. We're going to go as far as we can till it rains us out. I don't think we're putting no sails up today. We'll get there. (rhythmic beeping) >> NARRATOR: Battling the mud is only one of the things worrying these mega movers. The bigger concern is the revised weather forecast-- tornadoes. >> DAVID: You ready? Let's roll forward. Everybody out of the way. (horn blows) All right, here we go. >> NARRATOR: Suddenly, a problem. >> DAVID: All stop. What is it? What is it? One fitting in the hydraulic circuit on the steering circuit went out and we had to keep unplugging lines till we located that fitting. Yeah, let's go get the truck. Hey. Can we try this one now? >> Yeah. >> DAVID: All right, here we go. (engine starts) >> GARY: Yeah. Come on. That holds up. >> NARRATOR: Finally, the ship is on the move. >> NARRATOR: They roll the ship a few hundred feet and call it quits. >> DAVID: Well, the rain is going to get us, so we ain't no use to fight the weather. We going to park it right there, 'cause we know we on good hard ground for the night. Getting the plate laid down going to be the biggest challenge. We got it, though. We're where we want to be. (loud, rumbling thunder) >> NARRATOR: Within hours, a massive storm slams into South Carolina. Early the next morning, onlookers arrive at Ansonborough Field to see if the boat is still standing. They're relieved to find it is. >> DAVID: Just another day in paradise. Every day's a picnic, but I'm tired of eating hot dogs. >> NARRATOR: Telephone lines are lowered along the route to allow the ship safe passage. >> GLENN EMERICK: I think it's the first time we ever moved our telephone cables for a ship to pass underneath, so this is quite a, uh... an event. >> NARRATOR: The path looks like a storm debris field-- metal posts torn down, parking meters leveled. Actually, they're obstacles cleared to make room for the ship. >> DAVID: All right, we're ready to go. All right. (rhythmic beeping) Watch my dolly. Don't let me cut a tire on a piece of plate now. >> NARRATOR: Pulling the ship with 80 tires under it over a curb at an angle requires lots of plywood to even out the drop. (wood thumps and crackles) >> DAVID: You'll make it. You'll make it right there yet. All stop, all stop. All right, hey, slack off, Daniel. Tighten up, Alonzo. Oh, we hit 22 foot. We'll go 22-six then. It's a big one, it's a big one. (truck horn toots) >> NARRATOR: Just up ahead is Charleston's busy Port Authority... and a worrisome 35-foot-long ramp with a six percent grade. >> DAVID: They got us our path cleaned out. We'll go around, pivot in position to go up the ramp. It's going to take us a few minutes to negotiate the ramp. We got to feather the belly of the ramp out, so we don't bottom out the hydraulics. We only have 16 inches of travel on the cylinders, so, the front cylinder and the rear cylinder is going to be maxed out at one point each way. >> NARRATOR: Moving ships across land with dollies is a technique that dates back centuries. Perhaps never more cleverly or effectively used than by one man-- Mehmed the Conqueror. >> LYNCH: He was the person with the opportunity to expand the Ottoman Empire and finally claim for his people the city of Constantinople. >> NARRATOR: In April 1453, he launched an attack using 100,000 men, 100 ships, and a lethal new weapon. >> LYNCH: Among the weapons that Mehmed had at his disposal were a series of long-range cannon, including one monster that was 27 feet long and could shoot projectiles well over a mile into the city. >> NARRATOR: Surprisingly, the cannons were ineffective against the heavily fortified city. >> LYNCH: The harbor of Constantinople, the Golden Horn as it was known, was protected by a series of walls, but in addition to a series of walls that fronted the waterfront, there was a boom or chain that was strung across the entrance to the harbor, preventing would-be attackers from gaining access to the harbor. >> NARRATOR: Mehmed would not taste victory unless he devised a way to attack the city's most vulnerable point, but to do so meant moving his powerful fleet of ships across land. >> LYNCH: Essentially, what Mehmed did was construct an artificial ship track, using logs that had been sawed in half and then overlaid with lubricant that would cut down on friction. And then an army of laborers and animals that would move the vessels the quarter of a mile from the Bosporus into the Golden Horn. >> NARRATOR: The move took place under the cover of darkness. >> LYNCH: So when the residents of Constantinople awoke, there in the Golden Horn, waiting for them was a fleet of vessels. It was a very demoralizing revelation. It was a serious blow to the defense of Constantinople. (cannons firing) >> NARRATOR: Mehmed's troops stormed the city, killing Emperor Constantine. >> LYNCH: Military historians look to the siege of Constantinople as one of the turning points in world history. >> NARRATOR: Thanks to ancient mega movers, the once powerful Byzantine Empire had fallen. >> DAVID: All right, let's go. >> NARRATOR: Here in South Carolina, modern-day mega movers are worried about something very different falling. (truck horn toots) (rhythmic beeping) This 150-ton ship. The fear is that they don't have enough muscle to make it up the steep ramp, so they bring in a second truck to help push. But will it be enough? >> NARRATOR: Mega movers now face the challenge of getting the ship up an imposing ramp to the dock. The ramp is 35-foot-long with a six percent incline. The key is making sure the $4 million ship doesn't bottom out or roll back. >> DAVID: You can shut your power unit down right now. We'll set you up... >> Yeah. >> NARRATOR: While some team members connect air brakes to the dollies in preparation for the ramp... ...David Oswalt starts the other, easing the slope. >> DAVID: What we had to do was feather the ramp out with timbers and plywood so the hydraulics on the dollies would not extend too far, 'cause we only had 16 inches to travel. (indistinct chatter) >> NARRATOR: This is a nervous time for the crew. >> DAVID: If that poster moves one inch, you stop! >> (over radio): All right. (rhythmic beeping) (garbled radio transmission) (rhythmic beeping) >> DAVID: Good to go. Going over the curb. First dollies over the ramp. (rhythmic beeping) Coming down, Timmy. Down, down a little bit there, Timmy. Coming down... (garbled radio transmission) (rhythmic beeping) >> NARRATOR: Relief as it reaches the top. >> DAVID: Hey, he wants to get inside this yellow line right there. All right, let's move forward. There by the left, Jamie. Cut to the right. Take it to the right. Take it to the right. (garbled radio transmission) >> DAVID: All right, all stop. That's good. Leave the truck running. I'm gonna cut the truck loose... the back truck loose. (garbled radio transmission) My other team? They're probably eating chicken right now. (laughs) >> NARRATOR: The next big challenge is getting the ship lined up with the edge of the dock so that a crane can hoist it into the water to begin life as a teaching ship for students. Nearly half a century earlier, another ship was moved over land so it could become a permanent educational display at the Shelburne Museum in Vermont. >> LYNCH: The<i> Ticonderoga</i> was a walking beam, side-paddle wheel steamer. It was known as the Queen of the Lake. She was very involved in the passenger trade there for a number of years and taken out of service in the 1950s. >> NARRATOR: To move this symbol of early Americana, it would have to be lifted out of the water and hauled across two miles of fields. >> LYNCH: The timing of the move was really most important. When you're talking about a vessel that's some 900 tons, you're adding an additional weight to the ground that may not be able to be absorbed. They had to wait for the coldest time of year so that the ground would firm up and be able to accommodate this increased weight. >> NARRATOR: That meant moving it in the dead of winter. But that was only one issue. >> LYNCH: When you're trying to move a vessel some two miles over dry land, you'll encounter any number of logistical and engineering problems. >> NARRATOR: After a year of planning, in December 1954, work began. >> LYNCH: They created a series of dams and dykes which would allow the vessel to be moved from the waters to dry land. Huge quantities of earth were moved and then used to create a barrier that would prevent water from infusing into this new ditch. After the creation of the artificial dry dock, the vessel was then floated into the new location. >> NARRATOR: A huge railroad flatcar was rolled under the 220-foot-long boat. >> LYNCH: The water was drained out, and then, the vessel was welded to the flatcar. >> NARRATOR: January 31, 1955. She was now ready to start her final journey. Temperatures hovered near zero. >> LYNCH: In fact, it was so cold that the grease for the bearings froze, and they needed to be warmed with acetylene torches and some other devices, allowing for the movement of the vessel. >> NARRATOR: But the frozen ground was what the move needed. >> LYNCH: The worst possible scenario was for an early spring, and, in fact, that is what happened. You had this early spring that softened the ground, and the vessel started to actually sink into the mud. >> NARRATOR: Additional supports were placed under the massive ship, and they pressed on, battling the elements. >> LYNCH: Crews were slogging through a muddy terrain. >> NARRATOR: After 65 days, the <i> Ticonderoga</i> sailed into its final resting place. >> LYNCH: It was a very difficult logistical feat, but it worked. >> NARRATOR: Back in Charleston, South Carolina... >> DAVID: Andre! He's our lieutenant governor. He's a good boy. >> They don't pay me much in my state job. I'm here to work. (David laughs) >> NARRATOR: Only a few hundred feet are left in the<i> Spirit of</i> <i> South Carolina's</i> maiden overland voyage. >> DAVID: The biggest challenge now is to get the crane down the river and get the straps on. We'll proceed down the dock, and then we're going to stage it for the lift Sunday morning. Boat's doing fine. None of the shim is moved. She's loaded real well. So we-we in good shape. >> NARRATOR: The Charleston Giant-- the massive twin-boom crane that will be used to lift the<i> Spirit</i> and place it in the water-- needs to travel downriver and clear the Cooper River Bridge. In preparation of the crane's arrival, they will move the ship into its lifting position. >> BANYE: As soon as this cruise ship leaves here in an hour or so, they're going to clear the dock for us, and David's crew is going to hook the trucks back up to the trailer, and we are just going to move it on down. The launch isn't open to the public landside. Everybody will be in their boats out on the harbor. And there should be hundreds of boats out there tomorrow afternoon watching her go in the water. It's going to be extremely tight security around the ship, around the crane and around the Ports Authority. >> DAVID: Ship's gone, ship's gone. I'm glad somebody's going on a cruise. I'm going on a cruise with a John Deere. (indistinct shouting) (brakes expressing air) >> NARRATOR: The<i> Spirit</i> can now be towed to its final lifting position. In less than 24 hours, it will be raised and lowered into the harbor. >> That's good, that's good. >> DAVID: Daniel, give me that tape off the front of the truck. Cut it that way hard, cut it, cut it, cut it, Hugh. Cut it, Hugh. Lock one of those, lock off. All stop. All right, Palmer, y'all start stacking the pins under those beams. Hey, we're coming all the way down, 'cause we got just a little bit of pole. Yeah, we'll come down... >> You're dead on top of it. We can make that. We can lift it there. >> DAVID: All right. >> NARRATOR: After one last huddle, the movers must wait until the next day to make the splash. >> JENKINS MONTGOMERY: We'll be coming in to the port here at the worst tide possible. We have a six-foot rise and fall in the tide here in Charleston. Ebb tide is tide going out, and that's a three-knot current. It couldn't be a worse case scenario for us. >> NARRATOR: 7:00 a.m. Sunday morning. In preparation of the lift, the Charleston Giant makes its one-mile journey down the Cooper River to the<i> Spirit of South</i> <i> Carolina.</i> >> MONTGOMERY: This is why tide is such a factor for us. This barge is almost as big as a football field. And it draws six foot of water, and we got a thousand tons of machinery on top of it. So when you have that kind of energy below the surface, we'll come into the dock not parallel with the dock, but sideways to the dock, so the current will be hitting us broadside. This particular rig has two booms on it. They're 30 foot apart, and we're going to be 275 feet long drawing six foot of water. So tide plays a major role. >> NARRATOR: Two 50-foot-long polyester braided straps will be fed under the ship's keel and hooked on the other side. >> GARY: We're going to get the rigging underneath, get it hooked up, then we're going to find our center, snug up a little bit, get our soft girths and then check on our blocks. >> MONTGOMERY: All right, Brian, coming down both main oars. You're going to have to come nice and easy while we work these straps up underneath this hull. >> All right, come in. >> MAN: Roger, coming down in second gear. >> MONTGOMERY: Jump over here with Jimmy and help him. It's state-of-the-art equipment. It's light enough for a man to handle, but it's two to three times as strong as steel cable. Is that strap through the correct spot on the boat? There's no blocks or anything right here, is it? >> No, no blocks. >> MONTGOMERY: Okay, come on up. (mechanical clacking) We have spreader bars above the ship. They're the width of the ship, and then we'll put two straps all the way underneath the ship. So we'll have it in a cradle like a basket. We'll put some soft girths underneath the ship where the corners are hard to keep from damaging the sling or damaging the ship. And then it's just a matter of lifting it. Hey y'all do know that. >> MAN: What? >> MONTGOMERY: When we lift this boat, y'all will not be onboard. >> MAN: Yeah. >> MONTGOMERY: Nobody will be onboard. It's a challenge. Every lift is different. This is like lifting an eggshell. Normal operations, we're dealing with steel-- turbines, generators, heavy things. We can't scratch the paint. >> NARRATOR: A crowd has assembled at the harbor. VIPs are arriving at the dock, and locals are crowding the harbor in their boats, waiting for this historic moment. A second tugboat attaches itself to help keep the barge stable. On the tug is John Tolivaisa, the man who designed the dolly setup to move the ship and the rig to lift it. >> Tolivaisa! What's going on, man? >> TOLIVAISA: We got it the right way? >> MONTGOMERY: Yeah. Oh, yeah! Don't even go there! (both laughing) Don't even go there! >> TOLIVAISA: The crane that we use is a twin-boom luffing derrick. I reconfigured the design of it to put on the barge. It was initially a land-based crane that was used on the Columbia River and also in Bushy Park, South Carolina. It's a 500-ton capacity luffing derrick. We load tested it two years ago almost to the day. >> NARRATOR: With everything in place, it's finally time to raise the<i> Spirit.</i> >> MONTGOMERY: What's going to follow this move, what's not, we'll lift up out of there. >> That's why I say let's just take the top blocks off... >> MONTGOMERY: Yeah, yeah, that's good. >> Take the top blocks off of everything right there, just shimming this up there so it don't fall. >> MONTGOMERY: I'm going to go let Junebug know what's up. All right, coming up, both main hoists. >> (over radio): Coming up. (engine whirring) >> DAVID: She's there baby. She's yours. >> MONTGOMERY: We're coming up on both ends, David. >> DAVID: All right, you all watch your head with the blocks. >> NARRATOR: This is the moment that has everyone worried. The ship is at its most vulnerable. >> MONTGOMERY: A lot of major crane accidents happen 'cause of wind. Wind plays a large factor in a crane operation. A crane boom in the air is like a sail. It catches wind like you wouldn't believe. >> NARRATOR: If the winds and swells kick up, it can throw the barge off balance and send the <i> Spirit of South Carolina</i> crashing into the harbor. >> MONTGOMERY: How about it, John? Is that pretty or what? Brian, you can knock her out of gear, and let's leave that thing running. Go ahead and get, you can get out of the cab now. >> BRIAN: Roger that. >> NARRATOR: With the boat raised high and dry and after six years, the people of Charleston have a reason to celebrate. >> MAN (over distant PA): So many people out on the water controlling this project, and they should be here with us... >> NARRATOR: Jenkins and the tugboat driver constantly adjust for the tide and wind. >> MONTGOMERY: The only thing supporting this right now is we got two Kevlar slings that are wrapped in a basket underneath the hull of the boat. They're good for 170,000 pounds, straight pull, 340,000 pounds in a basket. >> Good girl. (cheering) >> NARRATOR: By the time a bottle of champagne has smashed against the bow, signaling her launch, the tide has dropped down six feet. >> MONTGOMERY: All right, Brian, coming up, both main hoists. >> BRIAN: Coming up! All right, fellows. Let's splash this thing in the drink and go home. >> DAVID: Jenkins, Jenkins, we're getting a lot of wind. I want everybody on this front of this barge, if it starts coming this way just put their hands on it. >> They got buoys out. >> DAVID: All right. >> (over radio): Coming down both mains. >> BRIAN: Roger that, coming down both mains, first gear. >> (over radio): Make a big splash. >> NARRATOR: The<i> Spirit of</i> <i>South Carolina</i> reaches the sea. (horn honking) For the first time, Captain Tony Arrow and his dedicated crew can board the<i> Spirit</i> on the ocean. With all hands on deck, they perform an extensive check for leaks, and declare it shipshape. David Oswalt, Jenkins Montgomery and their teams can now release the straps. >> MAN: It's all yours, Captain. >> WOMAN: Thank you. >> NARRATOR: This mega move is a success. >> MAN: Fair winds and smooth sailing. >> DAVID: We're done. We're going to Batesburg, South Carolina. (chuckles) It's just another day in paradise now. Jenkins and I are glad it's over. >> MONTGOMERY: Yes, we are. Good job, David. >> DAVID: Good job, Jenkins. And it floated. (laughs) (crowd cheering) >> MAN: Close 'em! <font color="#FFFF00"> Captioning sponsored by</font> <font color="#FFFF00"> 44 BLUE PRODUCTIONS</font> Captioned by <font color="#00FFFF"> Media Access Group at WGBH</font> access.wgbh.org
