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MARCOR Demo Project Alters Philadelphia Skyline
Implosion of historic smokestack goes off without a hitch.
11/19/2009–Hunt Valley, MD–The old Pennsylvania Railroad steam plant smokestack came down at 7:45 Sunday morning, November 15, leaning over until it crashed to the ground with a thunderous roar. The 60-year-old historic stack, once an integral aspect of West Philadelphia’s city skyline, had originally extended 323 feet off its ten-story base near Amtrak’s 30th Street Station. Demolition of the smokestack was just one aspect of the large-scale project currently being performed by MARCOR Environmental, a nationwide specialty contractor with headquarters in Hunt Valley, Md.
Prior to the implosion, Philadelphia and Amtrak police demarcated a safety zone around the crumbling stack, and air quality experts arrived to monitor the event. Traffic was temporarily stopped, and onlookers stood poised with camera phones ready. Then right on schedule, the strategically placed explosive charges were ignited, and the old stack began its controlled descent. It was over in less than a minute. Everything went safely, according to plan.
The extensive environmental and demolition work, which is being performed by MARCOR’s Downingtown, Pa. operation, includes asbestos abatement of the Penn Coach Yard powerhouse and its three suspended, stoker-style boilers; the associated turbine building; and the adjacent, three-story Pullman quarters. The structural demolition work addresses all three historic structures and the smokestack. The MARCOR crew has also removed over 400 tons of fly-ash and 50,000 gallons of water at the site. According to MARCOR Northeast Regional Manager Mike Burke, the entire project will be completed in January 2010.
MARCOR Environmental, founded in 1980, performs a full range of environmental contracting services. Services include industrial cleaning, asbestos and lead hazard abatement, mold remediation, plant/process decommissioning, demolition, soil and groundwater remediation, gun range remediation, storage tank management, disaster recovery work, and many other specialty project types. MARCOR is an affiliate of Nuprecon/CST. For additional information, call the corporate headquarters at 800-547-0128 or the Downingtown, Pa. office at 610-269-3250.
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