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| Blast demolishes landmark towers | Blast demolishes landmark towers |
| (19 minutes later) | |
| Two iconic concrete cooling towers in South Yorkshire have been demolished in a controlled explosion. | Two iconic concrete cooling towers in South Yorkshire have been demolished in a controlled explosion. |
| Millions of drivers passed the 250ft (76m) towers by the Tinsley viaduct on the M1 at Sheffield over the decades. | Millions of drivers passed the 250ft (76m) towers by the Tinsley viaduct on the M1 at Sheffield over the decades. |
| At 0300 BST the blast to reduce the "salt and pepper pots" to rubble left part of the north tower still standing but it has since collapsed. | At 0300 BST the blast to reduce the "salt and pepper pots" to rubble left part of the north tower still standing but it has since collapsed. |
| The M1 reopened to traffic shortly before 1800 BST after safety tests were completed on the motorway supports. | The M1 reopened to traffic shortly before 1800 BST after safety tests were completed on the motorway supports. |
| How is a cooling tower demolished? | How is a cooling tower demolished? |
| The blast was watched by several thousand people and the M1 motorway had to be closed from midnight on Saturday, between junctions 32 and 35. | The blast was watched by several thousand people and the M1 motorway had to be closed from midnight on Saturday, between junctions 32 and 35. |
| The towers stood only feet away from the twin-deck Tinsley viaduct, which carries the motorway on the top deck and the A631 on its lower deck. | The towers stood only feet away from the twin-deck Tinsley viaduct, which carries the motorway on the top deck and the A631 on its lower deck. |
| A joint statement from tower owner E.ON and the Highways Agency said: "The demolition has now been successfully completed. | A joint statement from tower owner E.ON and the Highways Agency said: "The demolition has now been successfully completed. |
| "The viaduct remains closed and the exclusion zone remains in place as planned to allow safety checks to continue." | "The viaduct remains closed and the exclusion zone remains in place as planned to allow safety checks to continue." |
| Only part of the north tower fell initially | Only part of the north tower fell initially |
| After the dust settled, about a third of the north tower was still standing but a BBC reporter at the scene said the pile of rubble left after the explosion gradually fell in on itself and reduced significantly in height. | After the dust settled, about a third of the north tower was still standing but a BBC reporter at the scene said the pile of rubble left after the explosion gradually fell in on itself and reduced significantly in height. |
| Workmen with gigantic mechanical diggers then removed the rest of the tower. | Workmen with gigantic mechanical diggers then removed the rest of the tower. |
| By Sunday lunchtime, Highways Agency officials said safety checks on the Tinsley viaduct were still ongoing and the M1 remained closed until the evening. | By Sunday lunchtime, Highways Agency officials said safety checks on the Tinsley viaduct were still ongoing and the M1 remained closed until the evening. |
| Local roads had been re-opened, but the agency said commuting motorists and goods drivers on longer routes should follow diversions set up both north and south of the viaduct. | Local roads had been re-opened, but the agency said commuting motorists and goods drivers on longer routes should follow diversions set up both north and south of the viaduct. |
| A spokeswoman said: "The upper and lower decks of the viaduct will remain closed as checks are currently taking place as planned. | A spokeswoman said: "The upper and lower decks of the viaduct will remain closed as checks are currently taking place as planned. |
| "Only when we are certain it is safe to do so will we re-open the viaduct." | "Only when we are certain it is safe to do so will we re-open the viaduct." |
| Earlier on Sunday Paul Scriven, leader of Sheffield City Council, said the focus was to get traffic moving. | Earlier on Sunday Paul Scriven, leader of Sheffield City Council, said the focus was to get traffic moving. |
| "We need to get the M1 opened as soon as possible," he said. "We have a Bank Holiday where people will be moving around the country, coming back home, going to see relatives or going to see places." | "We need to get the M1 opened as soon as possible," he said. "We have a Bank Holiday where people will be moving around the country, coming back home, going to see relatives or going to see places." |
| Despite campaigns to save the towers, which were the only remnants of the Blackburn Meadows power station, E.ON said it was destroying them as the 70-year-old structures had deteriorated. | Despite campaigns to save the towers, which were the only remnants of the Blackburn Meadows power station, E.ON said it was destroying them as the 70-year-old structures had deteriorated. |
| Emily Highmore, from E.ON, said preserving the towers would have been very expensive. | Emily Highmore, from E.ON, said preserving the towers would have been very expensive. |
| "They would require a very, very significant investment and fundamentally speaking we are an energy company and our job is to keep people's lights on." | "They would require a very, very significant investment and fundamentally speaking we are an energy company and our job is to keep people's lights on." |
| Nowhere else in the world has anyone sought to bring down similar structures that sit so close to a major highway viaduct Arthur Ashburner, Highways Agency The firm has been given permission to build a £60m biomass power station at the site. | Nowhere else in the world has anyone sought to bring down similar structures that sit so close to a major highway viaduct Arthur Ashburner, Highways Agency The firm has been given permission to build a £60m biomass power station at the site. |
| Before the towers were brought down Arthur Ashburner, from the Highways Agency, said: "This demolition is a unique situation and, as far as we are aware, nowhere else in the world has anyone sought to bring down similar structures that sit so close to a major highway viaduct." | Before the towers were brought down Arthur Ashburner, from the Highways Agency, said: "This demolition is a unique situation and, as far as we are aware, nowhere else in the world has anyone sought to bring down similar structures that sit so close to a major highway viaduct." |
| Some locals had tried to save the cooling towers and have them turned into an art installation. | Some locals had tried to save the cooling towers and have them turned into an art installation. |
| Campaigner Tom Keeley said: "You see very few cooling towers that are in quite such a visible position, they're 12 metres from the M1, and they kind of symbolise not only a gateway to Sheffield and Yorkshire but they also symbolise a gateway to the North." | |