Robinson & Birdsell have carried out the successful implosion of a Lancashire chimney.
UK explosive demolition experts Robinson & Birdsell have carries out a successful implosion at the Thornton Power Station near Blackpool. Further details will follow but, in the meantime, here’s a pair of videos:
No negative health effects from demolition of three smelter stacks.
Air sampling tests show that the demolition of three smelter stacks at the ASARCO smelter in East Helena in August did not produce negative health effects, the state Department of Environmental Quality said Friday.
“The data confirms that this demolition was carried out safely and successfully,” DEQ Director Richard Opper said.
The DEQ also concluded that the stack demolition’s impacts on air quality did not violate the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, which are designed to protect public health.
As part of the ongoing federal Environmental Protection Agency-directed cleanup of the smelter in East Helena, ASARCO demolished three industrial stacks at its East Helena facility Aug. 14. Because of concerns about the possible health impacts of dust, the DEQ captured an air quality sample in the vicinity of the site during and immediately following the demolition event.
Further details here.
City officials order partial demolition of two of Goa’s hottest nightspots.
The Goa coastal zone management authority (GCZMA) has ordered the partial demolition of the state’s most popular nightspots – Club Tito’s and Mambos – for violating coastal regulatory zone (CRZ) norms.
According to an order issued by the secretary of the GCZMA Michael D’Souza, structures built on the property measuring 547.82 sq metres, on which both clubs are built, are illegal. The GCZMA order dated Nov 3, a copy of which is with IANS, directs David D’Souza, the owner of Club Tito’s and Mambos to demolish the illegal structures within 20 days.
It is not yet known if the buildings will still be standing when the official demolition crews arrive (thanks to Robert Kullinski for that joke).
Click here for further details.
Big crowds expected to see the Big E implosion.
Demolition crews have completely gutted the first floor of the Executive Inn and will soon bring in the explosives that will take down the hotel.
The city of Owensboro is now preparing for a large turnout to see the final moments of the Big E, and it promises to be quite a show.
“If you’re right outside the 750 foot and you’re right at the perimeter there you’re going to feel the rattling in your chest,” project manager Steve Murray said. “It’s going to be a neat experience for this whole city. It’s a unique building and it’s going to look really well coming down.”
Read the full story here.
Drexel Shaft set for implosion; date yet to be set.
The Penn Coach Yard chimney, or the more colloquial term amongst students for the structure, the Drexel Shaft, will be imploded on a date still to be determined, according to James Katsaounis, assistant vice president of Communications and Marketing at Drexel University.
Amtrak plans to exploit the open property for the purpose of better security and emergency access to existing utility tunnels as well as the construction of a parking facility for maintenance and construction vehicles.
The implosion of the Shaft is significant to students at Drexel University as it has come to represent many of the red tape and administrative issues at the University. The Shaft also contributes to Drexel’s “ugly campus” ratings.
Read the full story here.
With new bridge built, Albert Gallatin Memorial Bridge is set to fall.
Just two weeks after a new Point Marion Bridge opened 15 feet away, a demolition company scheduled Monday morning to destroy the old, 810-foot-long bridge, which carried traffic along Route 88 across the Monongahela River between Fayette and Greene counties.
The rusty, retired structure, named after the treasury secretary under President Jefferson, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is the second-oldest cantilever-truss bridge in the state.
It remained in use until the Oct. 22 dedication of its successor, but PennDOT rated it “structurally deficient” and considered it one of the most unsafe bridges in Pennsylvania.
Read the full story here.
Results from last night’s Demolition Awards in Amsterdam.
The first-ever Demolition Awards took place in Amsterdam last night; the results were as follows:
Service & Support: Liebherr
Innovation Award – Custom Project: Rusch Special Projects
Innovation Award – Series Product: Volvo
Demolition Training Award: Dorton Group
Demolition Safety Award: DH Griffin
Environmental & Recycling Award: Costello Demolition
Urban Demolition: Keltbray
Industrial Demolition: General Smontaggi
Explosive Demolition: Safedem
Demolition Company of the Year: Safedem
Demolition Contract of the Year: Keltbray
Further details can be found here.
Exclusive: Report on Unfair Competition from the European Demolition Association.
Way back in June, the European Demolition Association (EDA) met in sunny Nice in the South of France. On the agenda were a number of discussion points, not least of which was the perceived unfair competition faced by accredited demolition contractors.
This matter was discussed in a round table session, the findings of which were then compiled by Mark Anthony of Demolition News in readiness for this weekend’s EDA-supported Demolition Summit in Amsterdam.
The full report is attached herewith.
Demolition Fail: German implosion goes awry.
Sometimes a picture speaks a thousand words but, in case this one isn’t speaking to you, we offer you our take, below:
Hans (left): “Was it supposed to end up like that?
Jurgen: “No, but if we tell them it’s an art installation to commemorate the fall of the Berlin Wall, no-one will notice!
Mass industry unemployment could be reduced for less than $4,000.
Dear US Demolition News reader,
I am writing this letter to you in the hope that you will work with me to help your fellow US demolition workers who, through no fault of their own, find themselves unemployed at this time.
Although the worst recession since the Great Depression is apparently over, the US economy is not out of the woods yet. Figures released today show unemployment to be at its highest level since 1983 (10.2% to be precise). According to the National Demolition Association, more than 7,000 US demolition workers are currently among that figure.
Now I realise that 7,000 out of the 15.7 million national total is small beer. But for those 7,000 demolition workers facing a bleak Christmas and an uncertain New Year, that small beer must feel like the end of the world.
For the past few weeks, I have been urging the US to adopt the demolition-jobs.co.uk scheme that I started here in the UK to help the industry’s short and long term unemployed in this country. That campaign has received a swathe of coverage and feedback, all of it positive, but a decision is still to be reached. And all the while, those US demolition workers remain unemployed; and a lack of confidence continues to undermine the recovery of the US economy.
The cost of implementing a US version of the demolition-jobs.co.uk website would be less than $4,000. No-one stands to make a profit from that $4,000; that simply covers the purchase of the background code and the changing of the various elements to US terms etc. (Furthermore, you must understand from the outset that this is not an investment – The site is free to use for employees and employers; no-one will make a red cent on this venture. So if you’re looking for a fast buck, you’ll need to look elsewhere.)
Now if memory serves me correctly, the National Demolition Association‘s membership comprises something like 1,000 members. So what we’re talking about here is a “donation” of less than $4 per NDA member company to possibly help get one of your fellow demolition workers back to what he does best – work demolition.
So what can you do to help? Well, the easy answer is that you urge the National Demolition Association to look at the UK site and to make a fast and positive decision. Failing that, we just need a group of like-minded, altruistic individuals that are willing to stump up sufficient cash to help their fellow demolition workers in their hour of need.
I thank you for your attention and apologise for the begging nature of this letter – I trust that it will be received in the spirit with which it is intended.
In the meantime, let me leave you with one final thought. The next time you emerge from your local Starbucks clutching your double-decaf grande macchiato, please remember that the amount you just spent could have helped put a US demolition worker back on site.
Kindest Regards
Mark Anthony
