Stack that fell the wrong way gets OSHA all-clear.

When the smoke stack collapsed at the old Ohio Edison site, the state safety officials declared that they will not investigate into the situation. The failed detonation is not going to be looked into by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration or OSHA.

The reason behind this, as given by OSHA, is that nobody was injured in the mishap. The 275 foot smoke stack that came crashing down in the wrong direction did not harm anyone. The aim of OSHA is to look after the health and safety of employees. Since nobody suffered any negative consequences from the whole incident, the agency does not see any point in looking into the matter.

Read more here.

Bellaire bridge debacle enters its second year.

The dilapidated Bellaire Bridge still spans the Ohio River as 2010 drew to a close, despite voiced intent this year to demolish it.

The bridge changed owners not once, but twice during 2010. And the matter of who now owns the bridge appears to be heading to an Idaho court in 2011. In May, Advanced Explosives Demolition of Coeur D’Alene, Idaho – stars of the reality television show The Imploders – purchased the bridge from Bellaire businessman Roger Barack for $1. Days later, AED reportedly sold the span to Delta Demolition and KDC Investments of Newton Falls, Ohio for $25,000. Representatives of both Delta Demolition and AED went before Benwood City Council on June 8 to speak of their plans to take down the bridge. And the bridge has been the subject of an ongoing dispute ever since.

“There are questions as to the ownership,” police chief Frank Longwell said in August. “Unlike in real property, there is no deed. Once either side gets what they need, we will have to have our city attorney research to determine who owns the bridge. It’s now a civil matter between folks who say they own it.

“We’re anxious to get it down, but right now these two guys have made a mess of the whole thing. It’s sad for them to put false hope on the city. They can’t come up with the required documents, then there is a squabble,” he added. “It’s embarrassing to be involved with project.”

No court date had been set in case by December. But Domoczik now says Delta Demolition plans to petition the Idaho court for permission to begin work on the bridge while the ownership issue is decided.

Read more here.

500 foot stack “will be history by mid-February”.

Almost 40 years after the Mohave Generating Station first went online, and five years after the plant ceased operations, the most visible part of the 1,580-megawatt coal-powered facility will be imploded.

According to current plans, the plant’s 500-foot stack will be a memory by mid-February, said Paul Phelan, manager of engineering and technical services for Southern California Edison’s (SCE) power production department. SCE is the majority owner of the facility, with a 56 percent share. Co-owners are: Salt River Project, with 20 percent, NV Energy, with 14 percent, and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power holding a 10 percent interest.

Ground was broken at the approximately 2,500-acre site in 1968. The plant design called for a 275-mile long slurry pipeline to bring coal from mines at Black Mesa, Ariz. to create steam that would run two large turbo-generators. The generators began operating on April 1, 1971, and Oct. 1, 1971, respectively. The facility directly employed approximately 350 people.

In 1999, a lawsuit was brought by environmental groups, alleging emissions from the plant violated state and federal environmental standards. SCE maintained the facility was operating in full compliance with those standards.

Read more here.

Owner of partly demolished rescue station calls for entire building to be knocked down.

Neville Dickens has put in a planning application for the Wrexham building on behalf of himself and his wife.

Wrexham council is considering whether to prosecute after demolition began in August on the Grade II-listed building.

A consultant hired by Mr Dickens called the Maesgwyn Road building unremarkable and its history could be marked by a photographic record and plaque.

The property was used to train rescuers searching for men trapped in mining accidents.

In August police were called and demolition work was halted after complaints by campaigners trying to preserve it.

Read more here.

Demolition drive for first phase of Haram expansion coming to a close

The demolition of over 2,000 properties as part of the first phase of the expansion of the northern courtyard of the Grand Mosque at Makkah – currently the world’s largest demolition contract – has nearly finished, said Assam Al-Turaimi, deputy chairman of the committee overlooking the expansion.

The expansion, which will change the face of Grand Mosque area once complete, was ordered by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah in January 2008 and will facilitate the accommodation of an additional 500,000 worshippers in the massive prayer complex by creating space in the northern and northwestern parts of the mosque.

The new expansion will cover an area of 370,000 square meters, and includes the building of new hotels, residential facilities, commercial centers and public utilities.

Read more here.

Liquidator applies for permission to demolish Fritzl home.

The house where an Austrian man locked up his daughter for 24 years and secretly fathered seven children with her could soon be torn down.

Josef Fritzl‘s court appointed liquidator, Walter Anzboeck, told The Associated Press by e-mail Wednesday that he’s submitted a request to local authorities to demolish the boarded-up gray concrete building in the town of Amstetten.

Read more here.

Further delays on stadium demolition contract

What started as the controversial demolition of a city landmark has developed into a never ending headache for the city.

Pete Anaya, Director of Engineering Services for Corpus Christi says, “We’re constantly contacting them on a daily basis to see what their status is, see how much equipment is out on the site. We’re doing everything we can to make sure they complete the project timely.”

A&R Demolition has fallen even further behind schedule, citing financial restrictions as the cause. This time they say they need an extra thirty to forty five days, and with a fee of $500 for each extra day, they’ll likely be facing even more financial woes.

“When the contract is finished up, we’ll go back and figure all the rain delays and other delays that the contractor is entitled to and adjust that number but currently as it stands it’s 30,000 dollars,” explained Anaya.

Read more here.

National Federation of Demolition Contractors seeking assistant to CEO.

It is surely a sign of the times and the increasing workload of the National Federation of Demolition Contractors’ CEO Howard Button that the UK federation has laid plans to find Button a much needed assistant.

Based at the Federation’s Resurgam House headquarters in Hemel Hempstead, the position offers the potential for both national and international travel whilst dealing with the organisation’s commitment in its native UK and overseas.

Full details of the position are available here, and an application form is available on request.

Family of cyclist files wrongful death suit against demolition company

The family of a 47-year-old Los Altos Hills woman killed when her bicycle collided with a big rig last month has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the truck’s driver and his employer. The driver has reportedly been involved in fatal collisions previously.

The latest complaint was filed Monday in San Mateo County Superior Court on Monday, the same day the California Highway Patrol released a report that concludes trucker Gabriel Manzur Vera was not at fault in the crash that killed Lauren Perdriau Ward.

The suit names Vera and the Castroville-based demolition company he works for, Randazzo Enterprises, as defendants. It alleges that the fatal Nov. 4 crash on Alpine Road near Portola Valley was a result of Vera’s negligence in driving directly into the path of Ward’s bike.

Earlier this year, Vera and Randazzo Enterprises paid $1.5 million to settle a separate wrongful death suit stemming from a 2007 collision that involved the trucker and a bicyclist in Santa Cruz.

Vera has been involved in three fatal collisions while on the job, according to CHP records, but investigators have never found him to be at fault.

Read more here.

Contractor at odds with city over Holly Street Power Plant.

If, like us, you have grown weary of reading about how city officials have nailed yet another demolition contractor to the floor with a mix of rock-bottom pricing and unsustainable payment terms, then this story is for you.

The Austin City Council has been looking for a contractor to dismantle the Holly Street Power Plant. The power plant was built in an East Austin neighborhood in 1960. Over the past 50 years, the neighborhood has grown rapidly and residents say they’ve witnessed noise, pollution and even fires. In 1995, the city council passed a resolution to close the plant, and in 2007, it shut down permanently. The structure still remains, but now city officials hope to find a contractor to deconstruct the building and clean up the land.

The city’s estimated budget for the project is set at $10 million, with the exception of value taken from any of the materials that are salvaged. But the recommended bid has come in at around $25 million, leaving city officials facing something of a dilemma as well as threats of legal action.

CST Environmental, one of the six firms that submitted a bid, has filed a protest with the city. Attorney Tom Nesbitt said the city is spending more taxpayer money than it needs to. “We had a city council that had to make a tough decision to cut the Trail of Lights because of concerns over the budget,” Nesbitt said. “And now the city staff is recommending that the city council spend $11 million more than it needs to in order to take down Holly Street.”

Read more and view a video here.