New York church demolished after catastrophic collapse.

Crews worked throughout the night to demolish the former St. Louis Catholic Church after the building partially collapsed Sunday afternoon.

According to Oswego police Capt. Tory DeCaire, authorities decided to immediately demolish the building after the collapse because the parts of the structure still standing were unstable.

Bystanders were cleared from the vicinity and the Oswego City Fire Department began using high-intensity hoses about 8:35 p.m. Sunday to knock down the steeple, the largest and most dangerous part of the building still standing.

Read more here.

New era at Philadelphia’s historic munitions manufacturing establishment

Demolition began today in a section of the former Frankford Arsenal to make way for The Shopping Center at the Arsenal. Buildings formerly used for military research, heavy manufacturing, munitions manufacturing and munitions storage will be replaced by a diversity of large and small retailers and restaurants that will serve Northeast Philadelphia communities and beyond. Shoppers will have direct access to the center via a new Bridge Street exit that is included in PennDot’s I-95 reconstruction and improvement project.

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, U.S. Rep. Allyson Schwartz (Pa.-13th), Philadelphia Councilwoman Joan Krajewski, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Environment, Safety and Occupational Health Addison (Tad) D. Davis IV and other elected officials and dignitaries from the state legislature and the city joined Mark Hankin, president of Hankin Management Company and owner of the Arsenal property, as he greeted more than 250 guests and signaled the beginning of the demolition.

Read the full story here.

Ceremony signals the impending end for former B-17 plant.

It’s been 40 years since airplanes were produced in Boeing’s Plant 2, which was constructed partly on piles over the Duwamish Waterway between 1936 and 1941.

But demolition of the plant is expected to begin this year, with cleanup and restoration starting in 2012 as permits are obtained. More than 76,000 cubic metres (100,000 cubic yards0 of tainted sediment will be removed and replaced with clean sand. Some 500 piles will also be taken out.

Sunday’s ceremony honored not only the industrial plant, but the men and women connected with its role in U.S. history. Two B-17 pilots spoke, as did a woman who was among the “Rosie the Riveter” female workers who took war-production jobs during World War II.

Read the full story here.

Thompsons of Prudhoe start work on iconic local landmark.

The demolition of a multi-storey car park in Gateshead made famous by a 1970s Michael Caine movie has started.

Equipment from leading local contractor Thompsons of Prudhoe moved on to the Trinity Square site, which featured in the film Get Carter, three years after revamp plans were announced.

The 1960s car park became a landmark on the Gateshead skyline and some film fans and enthusiasts of the Brutalist architecture hoped it would be saved.

The demolition is expected to take eight weeks.

The car park is part of a site where there are plans for a £150m redevelopment including shops, offices, a student village and supermarket.

Read the full story and watch a video of the initial demolition here.

Hundreds gather to say goodbye to Mississippi State University’s Suttle Hall

The crowd erupted with applause and pointed cameras at the former dormitory as the wrecking ball dropped repeatedly on the nine-story structure and brought down pieces of roofing, concrete, brick and rebar.

Read more here or view the video below:

Excavator operator walks away unharmed from fallen excavator.

Ron Marsh, the owner of Dixonville-based Marsh Contracting, has walked away unharmed from an accident that saw the excavator he was driving fall into an underground vault. The incident required the assistance of local firefighters who assisted in the rescue of Marsh and who also oversaw the preservation of overhead power lines that were in danger of being brought down my the excavator’s raised boom.

“If (the machine) had kept going, it would have come down on Miller Avenue and taken out every pole from there to Yellow Creek Street in a domino effect,” said Assistant Fire Chief Joe Iezzi of the Homer City fire company.

Read the full story here.

Health directorate calls for measures to mitigate dust, noise and vibration.

The Environmental Health Section of the Cape Town’s Health Directorate has reviewed the Contractors Environmental Management Plan, including a Specialist Dust, Noise and Vibration Plan, regarding the possible health risks that the implosion of the two Athlone towers on 22 August may hold, and have called for various mitigation measures to be implemented to minimise these risks. Possible risks include noise pollution, as well as large amounts of dust that can pose a risk to especially those who have chronic lung and heart conditions.

Dr. Ivan Bromfield, Executive Director: City Health, said: “The City is taking all necessary precautions to ensure that the demolition of the towers does not have an adverse effect on the residents of surrounding communities and on those watching the historic event. We also want to encourage the public to follow the guidelines we have provided in order to ensure that they observe the demolition of the towers in a safe environment and that those with medical conditions will not be exposed to the possible health risks.”

Since February 2010 when it was decided that the towers must be demolished, many people raised concerns about the presence of asbestos in the towers which could pose a health risk when the towers are imploded. This issue was also a concern for City Health as the presence of asbestos in the towers would lead to the distribution of wind-blown asbestos dust, during and after the implosion. The City therefore asked an accredited inspection authority to determine whether there is asbestos on the site, and is pleased to report that the inspection authority has issued a certificate to confirm that the site is asbestos free. This will therefore not pose a health risk during the demolition of the towers.

Read the full story here.

South Park Bridge comes down in August; another $15 million designated

Demolition will begin in August on Seattle’s old South Park Bridge that was closed to traffic June 30.

The spans will be removed first by mid-September. The foundation and both ends of the road deck will be removed some time between 2011 and 2013, said Frank Abe, spokesman for King County Executive Dow Constantine.

Board members of the Puget Sound Regional Council voted Thursday to use $15 million of the region’s federal highway money to remove the 79-year-old crossing, which served industries and a working-class residential neighborhood on the south fringe of Seattle.

Read more here.

Podcast follows newly-redundant demolition man on his quest for a new job.

Just over a week ago, DemolitionNews.com reported that the Wakefield-based contractor – Controlled Group – had gone into administration. Ever since then, we have been doing our level best to help the employees impacted by this unexpected collapse to find alternative employment.

As part of this effort to help find new jobs for those affected by the demise of the Controlled Group, and to hopefully help guide others through the demolition recruitment minefield, we have decided to follow a former Controlled employee as he tries to find alternative employment.

Colin Hiscock joined Controlled Group as Head of Contaminated Land earlier this year, bringing with him some 10 years experience in the demolition industry. We caught up with Colin as he is began his job search.

To listen to the podcast, please click the play button below. If you would like to view Colin’s CV, please click here. And if you’d like to contact Colin via LinkedIn, please hit this link.

We are, of course, hoping that Colin soon finds a job, making this the shortest podcast series int he history of audio. But Colin’s agreed that we can follow him every step of the way until then so look out for more episodes in the coming weeks.

Queensland companies struggle to stay afloat while others pay bribes.

Some Queensland building contractors say they are on the verge of collapse because they cannot compete with big companies cutting corners, wages and paying bribes to win contracts.

There are claims that “outside contractors” are cutting corners and underpaying wages to win contracts on major infrastructure developments.

Queensland Infrastructure Minister Stirling Hinchliffe says any concerns about work practices on Brisbane’s airport tunnel project should be referred to the authorities.

Brisbane hire company DIY Heavy Equipment is calling for an investigation into alleged corrupt practices within the industry.

Read more or view the video here.