Click the image to watch the controlled implosion of 1515 Flager in West Palm Beach, Fla.

It took years of legal wrangling and 6.5 seconds of explosions, but
the hurricane-ravaged condo tower at 1515 S. Flagler Drive in West
Palm Beach is gone. The implosion, carried out by Advanced Explosives
Demolition of Idaho, drew large crowds along Flagler Drive and the
Royal Palm Bridge, the middle span between the West Palm Beach
mainland and the island of Palm Beach. The warning horn, which went
off a little after the scheduled 9 a.m. blast time, was greeted
by whoops and hollers, clapping and the honking of the boat horns from
the crowd, and the explosions, 138 decibels loud, triggered a nearly
perfect on-site implosion. The remaining rubble pile was 42
feet high, below the 50-foot maximum set by the developer. [Palm Beach Post] and [Palm Beach Daily News]
[more]

For those wondering what next week’s demolition of 1515 Flagler Drive in West Palm Beach will look like, the video above should provide a frightening, yet visually-stimulating preview. The 30-story, hurricane damaged, uninhabited condo tower will be the third-tallest building in the United States to be destroyed by a controlled implosion when it goes down at 9 a.m. Feb. 14.

Valentine’s Day will gladden the hearts of even the loneliest West
Palm Beach residents when the longstanding skyline eyesore at 1515
Flagler Drive, a 30-story, hurricane damaged, uninhabited condo tower,
is destroyed. Advanced Explosive Demolition of St. Maries, Idaho will
handle the job, which will be the third-tallest building in the United
States to be destroyed by a controlled implosion, according to Eric
Kelly, the company president. The 1974 tower was ravaged by two
hurricanes in 2004 and its residents were permanently removed. A slew
of legal and financial issues over the building and the site have
delayed the demo job, but all regulatory approvals are now in place and
the work will proceed at 9 a.m. on Feb. 14. The destruction is expected to take
6.5 seconds, and inspired Palm Beach resident Cathleen McFarlane Ross,
73, to host a benefit party for friends, who can watch implosion
across the Intracoastal Waterway from her Palm Beach mansion on Worth
Avenue. She plans to serve Bloody Marys and request a minimum $25
donation to help Haiti.

[Palm Beach Post] and [Palm Beach Post]