OK, so I have been exposed to thousands of pieces of info about the Panama Canal over the past few days and hope to retain dozens of them. So in the interest of documenting my tidbits, here's some of what I've learned:
The Canal's nickname is “The Big Ditch”
1524 – The idea for a canal was first proposed by Spain
1881 – the French started digging to try to build a canal
1904 – the US acquired the land to become known as The Panama Canal Zone...the canal plus 5 miles on either side
1914 – the Panama Canal opened
1963 – the Canal starts operating 24 hours day after lighting was finally installed along the narrowest part of the canal (an area called the Gaillard Cut)
December 31, 1999 – 75 years of American control of the Canal ended and was returned to Panama due to a 1977 treaty signed by President Jimmy Carter
2014 – Coinciding with its 100th birthday, the expansion of the Canal will be complete with two more locks, one on each end. The locks will be longer and wider to allow larger ships and the water will be recycled.
Over 22,000 people died while the French were attempting construction, largely due to malaria and yellow fever
Over 5,500 people died while the Americans build the Canal.
The huge reduction in deaths was due in part to actions taken to defeat diseases including: paving streets, screening doors and windows, installing water supplies and sewer systems, draining marshes, and other steps to prevent mosquitoes from breeding
The Panama Canal is 50 miles long
Each of the 6 locks has the same dimensions: 110 ft wide; 1,000 ft long, 72 ft deep
The maximum ship size allowed: 106 ft wide; 965 ft long, 39.5 ft draft
Our cruise ship: the maximum size allowed
The Panama Canal saves 8,000 miles around South America, 12,000 from San Francisco to New York
The water that fills the locks comes from Gatun Lake and then gets deposited into the ocean
The water is fresh water. Salt (ocean) water can not be used in the locks since it would rust the structures, not to mention physics would make accessing it tricky.
The water in Gatun Lake is replaced by river flow and tons of rain
An average of 40 vessels travel through the Canal per day
The average toll to pass through the Canal is $34,000
The record toll was just set last month by a cargo ship at $440,000
Our cruise ship's toll was $330,000
The minimum toll (even for a sail boat) is $1,500
The lowest toll ever paid was by a guy who swam the Canal in 1928 over a 10-day period. Based on his weight, he paid 36 cents.
Tolls are now based on a number of factors including cargo capacity, water displacement, and desired priority
Due to priorities and tolls and such, some small crafts have to wait up to two WEEKS to enter the Canal
When it was controlled by the US, it was not run as a money-making venture. Now under Panamanian control, it generates about $2 billion per year for the Panama government.
No comments:
Post a Comment