Timber…Cough,Cough

At 7:30 a.m. on June 28, 2008, Xcel Energy razed the 570-foot-tall smokestack of the High Bridge power plant near downtown St. Paul, Minnesota.  I took about 150 shots in the entire sequence of the tower falling.  You can check out the video below.

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High Bridge Power Plant Smokestack goes BOOM!

I found out this week from some folks at work that the nearly 600 foot tall smoke stack near my office was going to be demolished this morning.  Great photo/video opportunity for myself and Jake!  We woke up earlier than normal and trekked over to St. Paul.  There were tons of people there.  We were fortunate enough to get a spot on Cliff Road directly across from the old coal burning plant.

At 7:30 with no siren warning that anyone around me heard, a small explosion occurred at the base.  The plan was for the tower to topple on a series of dirt mounds that would cushion the fall and break the material up more easily.  The missed their target “by that much”, but the worst of it was some debris that shot across Shepard Road (which was closed).

I shot a little over 110 images during the fall sequence (thank you Canon 40D!).  You can enjoy the photos up on my Flickr account or click on the YouTube video below.

http://www.vimeo.com/1258949