Crews complete demolition of Cheswick power plant boiler house
Crews removed the final portion of the old Cheswick power plant boiler house using a cable pull on Saturday.
This comes after a failed attempt last Sunday, which only brought down around 70% of the structure.
It was the second time's charm for Maria Myers.
"Just wanted to touch base and see it go," Myers said.
She was in this same lot last Sunday, and just had to see the finished job.
"Just a little piece of history, stuff that we've been seeing for all my life disappearing," Myers said.
Others watched that piece of history go too. Digital documentation almost seemed like a requirement.
"You never get to see this. I mean, it doesn't pop up every day," Matt Leonard of Pittsburgh said.
Nearby streets closed around noon after a couple of delays.
"I thought that we were going to reschedule it again," Myers said.
Sirens later signified the boiler house's last minutes.
"Everything went as planned," Bruno Moretti of Allegheny Valley Regional Emergency Management said. "Nobody was hurt."
A cloud of dust and debris did slide over nearby homes and streets.
"They have street sweepers, cannons, pressure washers," Sgt. Frederick Hockenberry of Springdale Borough Police said.
A lot of people here have memories they'll keep forever.
"I was here when they built it in 1970, and that looked nice then," Marty Luther of Springdale said.
People like Myers say it was still time to say goodbye.
"It's been ugly and an eyesore for quite a long time," she said. "We can put something pretty there for now."