Several hours ago the missing roof fragment was mounted in northern part of Arena Corinthians. This is where tragedy unfolded in late November. Soon the stadium will reach its final appearance.

It took almost six hours to put it in place. The last of seven segments of roof over the north end is finally in place, also being the very last piece of roof at all. Now white steel will be covered with sheets to provide final shelter for fans at Arena Corinthians.

Below the last steel truss glass and white composite cladding will be mounted, while finishing works, installations and furnishings will be done below it, on the floors affected by November’s tragedy.

Initially the roof was expected to be ready by December 2013, but on November 27 the last 100-ton piece of trussing collapsed along with the crane carrying it. Two people died, while the entire corner was closed off from the construction site.

Photo: SC Corinthians Paulista

It long weeks of strategic planning to finally remove the collapsed truss in January and begin repair work. Now that the steel structure is in place, it needs to gain its final durability. This will allow temporary supports to be removed from under the roof.

Overall progress on site is said to be at 98% currently, though there is still much to be done, particularly with the temporary end stands, required to reach the 65,000 capacity required for opening game of the World Cup.

First test event is expected to take place in mid-May, a month later than planned a few weeks back.