Demolition starts Tuesday to remove the Jet Star roller coaster that was catapulted off an amusement park pier in Seaside Heights during Superstorm Sandy on October 29.
The Associated Press reported that the demolition should take about four days to remove the ride according to Mari Mastoris, a spokeswoman for Casino Pier.
"We are thrilled about this," she said to the AP. "We've been waiting for this for a long time. It shows we're making progress and that we'll be open and ready for the summer."
The AP reported that the coaster submerged in water continues to draw crowds to the Seaside Heights boardwalk, which remains under construction.
"They're planning on taking it apart piece by piece and taking it away, Mastoris said about the demoltion. "They're going to take a crane around and take pieces off."
"In January, a man who lives nearby climbed to the top of the coaster and unfurled an American flag atop it before climbing down and being arrested by police. His municipal court case has yet to come to trial," reported the AP.
The project is expected to take about 48 hours to complete said spokeswoman Toby Wolf for Casino Pier.
"Ripping it out of there and getting everything out of the ocean," Wolf said to CBS New York. "[It's] pretty close to shore and that's a safety hazard for swimmers, surf."
A part of the roller coaster will be saved to serve as a memorial where the damaged pier will be rebuilt eventually.
"As we all know, it's been a long journey to get to here," Wolf told WCBS 880′s Peter Haskell reported CBS New York.
"Seeing that visibly gone will be kind of a feeling of moving forward," she said to Haskell. "A sense of moving forward."
The project is set to start right after Britain's Prince Harry leaves Seaside Heights on his tour of America.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
