Last Stelco blast furnace demolished on Hamilton bayfront – by Matthew Van Dongen (Toronto Star – August 17, 2022)

https://www.thestar.com/

The towering structure was felled by a controlled explosion just after 9 a.m.

Goodbye Big “E” — it was a blast. The last Stelco blast furnace in Hamilton was demolished Wednesday using a controlled explosion that cut out the supports under the towering steelmaking relic that dominated the western bayfront skyline for more than half a century.

A massive boom that echoed around the harbour was followed by a slow collapse of the roughly 200-foot-tall “E” blast furnace built in 1968 on Pier 16.

Hamilton police warned the public early this morning about what was expected to be a “very big and very loud” explosion. The new owner of the former Stelco lands and blast furnace, Slate Asset Management, worked with Stelco and a contractor on the demolition.

At least one member of Stelco’s community liaison committee, Jochen Bezner, raised concerns about the prospect of demolition dust being blown into nearby residential areas — as happened during an infamous building collapse at the former Slater Steel property in 2019.

For the rest of this article: https://www.thestar.com/ths/news/hamilton-region/2022/08/17/last-stelco-blast-furnace-demolished-on-hamilton-bayfront.html