Washington Monument Reopens

With more than 150 cracks patched and repaired in its white marble, the Washington Monument is reopening for the first time since a 2011 earthquake caused widespread damage.

The 130-year old memorial honoring George Washington reopened for public tours today. It's been closed for about 33 months for engineers to conduct an extensive restoration of the 555-foot stone obelisk.

Now new exhibits have been installed at the top, and visitors can once again ride an elevator to look out from the highest point in the nation's capital.

During the restoration, The Associated Press had a look at some of the worst damage from the 500-foot level. Stones were chipped and cracked all the way through in some places. Others had hairline cracks that had to be sealed.

[Associated Press]