HERE’S an update on the demolition of Fiddler's Ferry.

In just a few weeks, the iconic cooling towers will be gone for good with the demolition set for December 3.

Ahead of the date, Penketh and Cuerdley councillor Craig Lenihan met with P.P. O’Connor, the demolition firm, to see the progress firsthand and to get answers to some of the questions raised by residents.

He has shared the answers on Facebook – which covers everything from asbestos to dust to how long the actual explosion will take.

Here are the updates from Cllr Lenihan:

Asbestos

A number of people were concerned that asbestos may remain within the towers and this could become airborne during the blowdown. The contractor has confirmed that all asbestos has been removed and that during the process air particulate monitors were in place around the site. They remain in place and operational. The towers were visited and as we can see from the pictures, only concrete remains.

Explosion

The whole event will take 10 seconds and will be 2 bangs half a second apart. Each tower will have over 2400 small pieces of explosive (pictured) detonated to achieve the planned result. (The 2 explosions will only last one second). It is just the 4 NW towers on this day. These are the 4 closest to the road.

Communication

I have discussed that the wider community is invested in Fiddlers Ferry and its future. O'Connor are going to send a wider communication to residents soon. They are currently working with those within the exclusion zone (400m)

Dust

This is weather dependent as rain and wind could impact either way. It is expected that no dust will leave the site. However, crews will be in place to help local residents should there be any impact from dust.

Roads

The road by the power station will be closed from 7am-12pm. The closure will be from the roundabout near the Park. There will be access for residents only and no other vehicles will be allowed past.

Time

There is no set time for the blowdown. The window is 8am-12pm so it could happen any time during that window. The decision will not be made ahead of time as it will be based on a number of factors including safety and weather etc. The date will be Sunday, December 3, 2023.

Cllr Lenihan added: “The whole team were available today and I was able to get great insight into the process and the safety precautions they are taking.

“During the inspection I met one gent, Ian, who has taken down almost 40 of these towers already and he shared the plan and how they have designed the explosives so the towers will fall on themselves.

“It was reassuring to speak with the person direct who had the experience in handling a project like this.”