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Thousands Tune in to Watch Gym Demolished
Demolition experts pulled down a gymnasium in the capital of Guangdong Province May 18 with a controlled explosion.
Within 3.5 seconds, the 43,000-square-metre Guangzhou Gymnasium was razed to the ground by over 300 kilograms of explosives.
Billowing smoke and dust completely covered the site for several minutes after the explosion.
But, thanks to tons of water sprayed onto the site from the surrounding area and from an overhead helicopter, the dust was kept to a minimum and dispersed within five minutes.
"This demolition is a breakthrough because we have reduced shock waves, noise and dust to a minimum level," said Zheng Bingxu, chief engineer with Guangdong Hongda Demolition Engineering Company.
He said there had been no complaints about the blast.
Reports from Guangzhou Environmental Monitoring Station showed the blast was only 64 decibels loud 24 metres away from the gymnasium.
Hundreds of thousands of people watched the demolition on television to witness the end of the 45-year-old gymnasium, which was once the second largest in China.
Zheng said the building was dynamited after 18 days of preparation work to make way for a metro station and a new 56-floor commercial building. These will be built in the next two years.
Source: China Daily
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