Contractor pleads guilty on explosives charges…

Man who narrowly escaped during stack collapse now facing explosives prosecution.

A Pell City contractor pleaded guilty Tuesday to federal explosives storage and record-keeping charges filed after his failed implosion of a 100-year-old smokestack that ended with the structure collapsing on top of the trackhoe he was operating to complete the job (we brought you a video of that collapse and it is reproduced, below).

Timothy Phifer, 54, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge R. David Proctor to one count of failing to record the acquisition of explosives and one count of improperly storing explosives.

Sentencing is set for 14 August.