Spectators: 'Sad to see 1515 blown up' but 'awesome' demolition went too fast.
By ANDREW ABRAMSON - Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Sunday, Feb. 14, 2010
The 1515 S. Flagler Drive tower is no more. It came down in a cloud of dust in less than 10 seconds at about 9:05 this morning.
The city of West Palm and General Contractor The BG Group officials were pleased with the lack of damage and with the implosion overall.
"It was beautiful," said Lisa Kelly, President of Advanced Explosives Demolition. "You couldn't ask for anything better. I'm crying. I'm getting too old for this. So sweet." She and her husband, Eric, then kissed and embraced for about 20 seconds.
Eric Kelly, Blaster and patriarch for the Idaho company, said preliminary results showed the vibration from the explosion was 0.15 on the Richter scale, which he said was phenomenal as he had believed it would be 0.25. "I was nervous," he said. "There's all these people, all this liability, and it all culminates in the last minute.
But it was perfect. Everything's perfect." The explosions, 138 decibels loud, left debris 42 feet high, also "perfect" as it was less than the 50-foot maximum the developer wanted. The demolition went off a few minutes later than expected because an intruder pretending to be with a television crew came too close to the demolition site immediately before the scheduled detonation. He had to be removed. Police sirens wailed twice in the moments before the explosion, warning people of the impending event.
Then, three explosions sounded — boom, boom, boom. Next, smoke curled upward from three different floor spread across the middle portion of the building, and it started collapsing, with the east side falling first, and the west side then falling in on the east, much of it hidden in the cloud of dust and debris. That cloud drifted east over Palm Beach but appeared to dissipate within minutes.
[Unfortunately, this Palm Beach area resident was out of town for the implosion, but saw it on our local news when I returned home. Congratulations on a job well and beautufully done! The implosion was a fantastic and impressive feat, confining the pile of rubble from such a tall structure to a small area. You guys bring a whole new meaning to the word "professional."
And to the girls behind the operation (both of them, the big one and the little one) YOU ROCK! J
Controlled explosions brought down the Lake Champlain Bridge between New York and Vermont this morning. Snow fell and a small group of onlookers watched as the 2,184-foot-long span between Crown Point, N.Y., and Addison, Vt., was dropped into the water and ice at the narrow south end of the lake. There was a sharp concussion followed by billowing smoke as steel and concrete fell. The 80-year-old bridge was closed Oct. 16 when engineers deemed it wasn't safe because of severe erosion to its concrete piers. Coeur d'Alene, Idaho-based Advanced Explosives Demolition handled the detonation, using 800 pounds of explosives packed into more than 500 charges. Debris will be removed by the spring, when construction is scheduled to begin on a new span expected to open in the summer of 2011.
"On behalf of St. Lucy's parishioners and in my own name, I wish to express our profound gratitude for the magnificent work you did in the demolition of Columbus Homes. It was a perfect job. We are not accustomed to such a professional conduct. People are still amazed at how smoothly everything went. So many were concerned about the safety of the Church. They were extremely happy to hear that the statues did not move and windows and walls did not crack in this 102 year old church, only 50' from the implosion."
Rev. Msgr. Joseph J. Granato Pastor, St. Lucy’s Parish
Controlled explosions brought down the Lake Champlain Bridge between New York and Vermont this morning. Snow fell and a small group of onlookers watched as the 2,184-foot-long span between Crown Point, N.Y., and Addison, Vt., was dropped into the water and ice at the narrow south end of the lake. There was a sharp concussion followed by billowing smoke as steel and concrete fell. The 80-year-old bridge was closed Oct. 16 when engineers deemed it wasn't safe because of severe erosion to its concrete piers. Coeur d'Alene, Idaho-based Advanced Explosives Demolition handled the detonation, using 800 pounds of explosives packed into more than 500 charges. Debris will be removed by the spring, when construction is scheduled to begin on a new span expected to open in the summer of 2011.