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Rockefeller Center Prepares To Put Christmas Tree On Display

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Preparations were under way this weekend for the decoration and lighting of the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree.

As WCBS 880's Sean Adams reported, the 76-foot-tall, 47-foot-wide tree was felled Thursday morning in Shelton, Conn. It was put in place Friday and will be decorated this weekend.

Rockefeller Center Prepares To Put Christmas Tree On Display

The tree tips the scales at 12 tons, and plenty of metaphorical elves were needed to prepare it for its glory.

"There's electricians and carpenters and engineers and gardeners and cleaners and porters and patrol officers, it's a big undertaking," said Rockefeller Center head landscaper Eric Pauze.

First up goes the eight-story scaffold, followed by 40,000 multi-colored LED lights, Pauze said. A total of 5,000 miles of wire will be required to operate them.

With six feet of wire becoming a tangled mess in the average home, how do they keep five miles of cords straight?

"Well, it's tough but, the electricians do a great job pulling it up," Pauze told Adams. "No, never gets tangled up, and you know it's a big, thick roll -- that's for sure."

For the first few weeks, the Rockefeller Center Norway spruce will drink about 90 gallons of water a day.

The tree-lighting ceremony is scheduled for Dec. 4 and the tree will remain on display until Jan. 7.

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