Sunday morning blast fells 18-storey Birmingham tower block.
DSM Demolition Ltd., were chosen by Birmingham City Council to demolish Cornwall Tower; an 18-storey tower block situated on Heaton St. in the Boulton complex of Soho Birmingham, today at 9.14 am on October 26th 2014.
Built in 1970 and standing at 52 metres high, the tower was blocked off during the blow-down along with surrounding roads which were protected by timber mats.
The process of preparing the tower for the blow-down took a total of 14 weeks, where the DSM site team removed all asbestos and soft-stripped the building of any non-structural material, leaving only a concrete shell. The building was then pre-weakened and explosive charges were placed in pre-selected locations to achieve a successful structural collapse. DSM are proud advocates of environmental sustainability, and it is estimated that over 96% of the demolition material will be collated and recycled.
Residents within a 150 metre radius were evacuated before the blow-down including local businesses, who all watched intently as the building collapsed in 8 seconds. There were no reported incidents or delays, allowing the DSM site team to begin the clean-up operation. Dust clouds billowed, and once it settled, sweepers and manual hoses arrived to immediately clear the site.
