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London residents will have to make do without the chimes of Big Ben for a while. After 157 years of nearly uninterrupted service, the iconic clock in London has become worn and requires repairs.
Steve Jaggs, Keeper of the Clock, said: "This project will enable us to give one of Britain's most famous landmarks the TLC it so desperately needs and deserves."
The Elizabeth Tower, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, houses the clock and is visited by 12,000 people a year. It's said to be structurally sound but water caused damage to its masonry and there's corrosion in the cast-iron roof and belfry and the frame which holds the clock's bells. It all needs fixing.
Work will also help to bring the building up to modern health and safety standards. It will have a lift installed to make it easier and quicker to evacuate an injured person and give access to disabled people who can't climb its 334 steps. And at a time when energy efficiency is a concern, the lights which illuminate the clock dials and the belfry will be replaced by low energy LEDs.
Work, with an estimated cost of ￡29m, is set to begin early in 2017 and is planned to take three years. The clock will be silent for only a few months though and might come back to life in very special occasions.
The name Big Ben originally referred to the 13.5 tonne Great Bell within the tower, but ended up being used for the clock and tower too. The clock stands 96m above the Houses of Parliament. It was designed by architect Edmund Beckett Denison and began keeping time on 31 May 1859. Surely it might be our turn to give this famous symbol of Britain some time to rest and recover.
词汇表
to make do 将就着，凑合着用
chimes 报时钟声
uninterrupted 没有中断过的
worn 受到磨损的
repair (noun) 维修
landmark 地标性建筑
TLC (tender loving care 的缩写) 细心护理
UNESCO World Heritage Site 联合国教科文组织世界文化遗产地
structurally sound 结构上没有问题
masonry 砖石结构
corrosion 生锈、腐蚀
cast iron 铸铁
to fix 修理、整修
health and safety standards 健康安全标准
to evacuate 转移，疏散
to replace 更换
LED (light-emitting diode 的缩写) 发光二极管
Houses of Parliament 议会大厦
architect 建筑设计师