Since
their inception over 100 years ago, explosive demolition projects
have consistently produced a handful of sensory elements that
are as reliable as tomorrow's sunrise.
The
quiet, palpable anticipation just before a blast.
The
startling, thunderous sound of initial detonation.
The
unified roar of approval from exuberant spectators.
And, since
September 11th, the phalanx of emergency responders waiting
anxiously to converge on a debris pile to stage an emergency
response drill.
The
use of explosive demolition projects for emergency response
training is not new. Our engineering team has been familiar
with the practice since the 1980s, and it can be reasonably
assumed that these events have been utilized for such purposes
far earlier than that.
What is
different now is the fact that virtually every blowdown project
occurring in the United States - and many in the United Kingdom
- is being relied upon for some type of rescue or communications
drill.
Over
the past few months, building implosion projects in New Orleans,
Philadelphia, Fort Lauderdale, Baton Rouge, London, Sheffield
and Leeds have been the subject of major rescue operation
or emergency communications tests. At least a dozen demolition
contractors and blasting firms have permitted local and federal
rescue officials to use their jobsites after establishing
that all explosives have detonated properly.
Hundreds
of firefighters have participated in these drills, as well
as specialized Technical Rescue teams, Haz/Mat teams, Federal
Urban Search and Rescue teams, Sheriff's Officers, police
officers, and various other emergency management officials.
In the UK, members of the elite Special Forces have also been
involved.
Equally
as impressive as the army of responders is the state-of-the-art
equipment they use. Complimenting the usual array of heavy
rescue hardware and search dogs are thermal imaging cameras,
ultra-sensitive sound monitors and instruments to test the
air for dangerous chemicals.
In
addition, scientists from the U.S. National Institute of Standards
and Testing (NIST) have been examining how different types
of radio transmitters perform in these extreme environments
(the failure of radio communication was identified as a significant
problem on 9/11). For these tests, technicians program up
to 20 transmitters to operate at various cell phone and emergency
frequencies, then place them deep within several buildings
to be blasted. As one scientist explained, "These experiments
provide valuable data about signal propagation through debris
consisting of typical building materials in a chaotic arrangement
after collapse."
Perhaps
most telling is the fact that these staged emergency events
show no signs of diminishing. The NIST tests will likely continue
for several more months or even years, the next emergency
response drill will likely occur in Scotland later this summer,
and implosionworld.com routinely receives inquiries from safety-equipment
manufacturers and government agencies expressing similar interests.
It is
both fascinating and a bit disturbing to realize that rescue
drill personnel now consistently outnumber TV news and documentary
crews on large implosion sites. On one hand, it is almost
impossible to view these drills on project after project without
interpreting them as a sad commentary on the state of our
world. However on the other hand, one can't help but be inspired
by the determination of so many people to ensure that life-saving
efforts and equipment are utilized to maximum efficiency.
For most
people, the optimistic view should prevail. After all, history
has shown us that lessons learned on these drills will successfully
be applied to a far wider group of emergency scenarios than
just terrorist attacks, and just as important, will be shared
with rescue personnel operating far beyond the borders of
the United States and United Kingdom.
