Hatfield power plant demolition to continue next week

Jun 04, 2023

Staff writer

Courtesy of FirstEnergy

The hyperbolic cooling towers scheduled for demolition appear on the left. The smokestacks in the center of the image were razed in March.

A pair of cooling towers at Hatfield's Ferry Power Station in Monongahela Township will be demolished next week.

It will be the second of three planned demolitions at the now-defunct Greene County facility, which is owned by FirstEnergy Corp.

The hyperbolic cooling towers stand at 500 feet and 550 feet tall. They will be taken down by near-simultaneous blasts at 11 a.m. June 8, according to FirstEnergy spokesperson Todd Meyers. Meyers said the blasts will be separated by a fraction of a second.

At the same time, there will be a blast to fracture concrete structures within the boiler house. According to Meyers, that blast is intended to weaken supports to make removal of the structure easier when it is demolished later this year.

In March, Michigan-based contractor North American Dismantling Corp. (NADC) razed three smokestacks at the site. The demolition was originally planned to take place in September, but plans were delayed after an NADC employee fell and later died of his injuries.

Cody James Hatt, 29, of Carrollton, Mich., died at the Hatfield plant on Sept. 28. According to the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA), Hatt was torch-cutting a power plant vent for removal when he left the catwalk and got on top of the ventilation system.

According to OSHA's report, the vent collapsed and Hatt fell approximately 25 feet. OSHA issued three citations against NADC on March 24 related to preparatory operations, a failure to have fall protection and the removal of steel construction, according to OSHA's website.

NADC is being fined $31,250 in connection with the citations. As of April 14, NADC was contesting the claims according to OSHA's website.

The demolition on June 8 will occur rain or shine. State police will stop traffic several times along Route 21 between 10:45 a.m. and 11:10 a.m.

Staff writer

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