Slo-mo demolition of iconic Philadelphia Drexel smokestack

Nicole sez, "Philebrity posted a haunting video of the recent demolition of the Drexel Shaft in Philadelphia. The tripped out music and slowly tumbling smoke stack aptly visualize a crumbling American economy."

He's One Bad Mutha- Shut Your Mouth! But I'm Talking About DREXEL SHAFT! (Thanks, Nicole!)

Previously:

I write books. My latest is a YA science fiction novel called Homeland (it's the sequel to Little Brother). More books: Rapture of the Nerds (a novel, with Charlie Stross); With a Little Help (short stories); and The Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow (novella and nonfic). I speak all over the place and I tweet and tumble, too.

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Anonymous

obviously the work of fire.
michaelb

Cue bird, and…

scene.

[hd version]
t3hmadhatter

You can see the shockwave of the crash in the glass building behind ground 0. This is cool. Way cool.
caffeine addict

It’s a cool video, but just toppling a tower like that so close to a railway line? Really?

Old Fred would have had it down almost in its own footprint. No fancy explosives, just knock a hole in the chimney, prop it up with wood, then start a big fire.

The video is long because it a big of a memorial thing, but just watch how they all stand there, bloody close to the chimney, and watch it collapse toward them…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=945T56ZxFkE
- franko
  
  holy crap, caffeine addict, that video was a lot of buildup but the payoff was TOTALLY WORTH IT. everyone should see that. i had never heard of mr. dibnah before, but my hat’s off to him. what a craftsman.
- Anonymous
  
  They laid it down right between two Amtrak lines. They actually dropped it on top of the (abandoned) Pullman building. A traditional implosion would have resulted in debris landing on the tracks, which was an unacceptable option.
- Chinny Racoon
  
  Good old Dibnah.
- devophill
  
  I’ve seen that Fred Dibnah video before, it’s great. I love guys like Fred Dibnah and Blaster Bates.
  “Fred would have had it down almost in its own footprint.”
  
  Well, Fred’s stacks were generally brick, I don’t believe the Drexel shaft was.
ripplepoppy

“Mom? I think Drexel’s gonna be sick!”
–http://www.wegmanworld.com/gallery/index.html
Tofino

if you play it backwards it makes a great viagra commercial!
Anonymous

This was a victory for all Drexel University students. The smokestack was known as the lovable icon “Drexel Shaft”, a representation of all the ways students were screwed over. Progress!
Anonymous

For those interested, the music is:

Imogen Heap – Hide and Seek.
emo hex

Yes, they always break in half before they hit the ground,
but why does this happen? (wind resistance on the longer
portion?)
hallpass

Note the glass in the tower behind shaking as the upper portion of the stack hits the ground. Amazing. I’ve got to get on the HD bandwagon.

Also, for more on the “shaft,” check out The Necessity for Ruins blog:

http://ruins.wordpress.com/
Enoch_Root

“…aptly visualize a crumbling American economy.”

Or it aptly visualizes the decline in use of steam heat powered by coal in the us, but lets not quibble.
- Lester
  
  Or it aptly visualizes the decline in use of steam heat powered by coal in the us, but lets not quibble.
  
  Exactly. If anything it is a sign of progress in this town. That thing has stood lifeless over 30th Street Station for ages. ‘Bout time it came down.
  
  Between this, the new S. Street bridge and Penn’s plans for the postal lands, the whole west center city/east university city area is getting a much needed sprucing up.
jokel

All the while I was trying to enjoy the awesome majestic event shown I expected someone to get shot. Damn you, SNL!
amuderick

I was there and took this 360 panorama of the crowd right after the charges fired:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/amuderick/4110168812/sizes/o/

@caffeine addict – it’s physics. they know what is going to happen. Controlled Demolition is the best in the business and they designed this unusual sideward fall for the tower.
simonbarsinister

Love Imogen Heap’s “Hide and Seek”…
Anonymous

@emo hex – the chimney pivots around the base as it falls, so the top is subject to higher centrifugal forces than the parts closer to the base. As the collapse progresses, the lower half of the chimney contacts the wall of the rectangular building, the lower half is slightly slowed and the mortar holding the bricks of the chimney together reach its tensile strength limit (cement and mortar aren’t so good in tension as they are in compression) and the top half separates from the lower half. You’ll notice that the top half ends up further to the right than might be suggested by its rotation at the start of the movement, that’s the (now unhindered) centrifugal force pushing the top part of the tower right.
Anonymous

I always suspected that when America would fall, the soundtrack would be a morass of autotune
HornCologne

Well this is a first on YouTube:

“The video is not available on your country due to copyright restrictions.”

YouTube joins the rankest of ranks with the likes of Hulu, Spotify and all those who think the Intertubes should somehow magically conform to national boundaries … sigh.

“We’ve got that demolition copyrighted. It’s a work of art. No one knocks crap down like we do. Can’t let them damn foreigners see us at it, ’cause we’ll lose sales.”

Please help me pile scorn on them, someone.
Noodle

Very very surprised there isn’t more references to Fred Dibnah here..
Nollie

Hey, I’m not complaining about it coming down. I am aware of Penn’s plans to revitalize the area. I just liked how the original blogger linked it to the demise of industry in the US. Truthfully, I never expected my words to be re-posted here :)
Anonymous

goddamn SNL, I also could only think about someone getting shot.
ackpht

Note also that it breaks in half when it’s about 40 degrees above the ground. Tidal forces at work.
Mark Frauenfelder

I don’t believe terrorists did this. It has all the signs of an inside job.
- IWood
  
  You spent your childhood denying that Buster knocked over your wooden block tower in kindergarten, didn’t you? There are fanatics in this word who hate our…our successful tall things. Wake up!!!
MadMolecule

Watch it in full-screen HD: You can see the shiny building next to it shimmy when the shockwave hits it.

Bad ass.