Supertech demolition countdown begins; officials checking for loose ends

The Noida Supertech Twin Towers Ceyane (29 floors) and Apex (32 floors), part of the Emerald Court, were found to be in violation of multiple regulations regarding construction and have therefore been ordered to be demolished. The demolition is set to be executed Sunday by 2:30 pm.

Noida:The countdown for the historical fall of the Twin Towers has begun, with the preparations hitting the final stages as the officials are making sure there are no loose ends left. They are engaged in re-checking every arrangement and are ensuring no technical fault before the blast. Meanwhile, the residents of the neighboring societies are set to celebrate the demolition with drummers in place, while the Twin Towers have been barricaded and movement of people around is completely banned.

The Supertech twin towers of Noida, which are set to be demolished at 2:30 pm on Sunday, have been infused with around 3,700 kgs of explosives in some 7,000 drilled holes. The entire procedure to destroy both the towers -- Ceyane (29 floors) and Apex (32 floors) -- will cost around Rs 17 crore and is the biggest project to be razed in the country by using explosives. It will take 9 seconds for both the buildings to be entirely demolished through a process called the 'waterfall technique'.

Since morning, about 5,000 residents of the two housing societies adjacent to the twin towers have been moved to safer places, while private security and some representatives of the residents' group will stay within the societies till around 1 pm after which both premises would be totally vacant. The supply of cooking gas and power has also been discontinued in the two societies in Sector 93A in view of the implosion planned at 2.30 pm on Sunday, an official overseeing the evacuation exercise said.

"The evacuation has been completed. The cooking gas and electricity supplies have been discontinued. They will be resumed after security clearance post demolition later," a police officer said. Besides the residents, their vehicles and pets have also been moved out, the official added.

The airspace will be closed for about 30 minutes and surface traffic has also been diverted. A green corridor has been established to attend to any emergency situation, while traffic diversion plans are also being implemented in the area, informed Ganesh Prasad Saha, DCP Traffic.

He also said that the expressway will only be closed right before the blast around 2.15 pm. "It will be opened half an hour after the blast, as soon as the dust settles down," added the DCP. He said that the instant command center is equipped with seven CCTV cameras adding that traffic experts are monitoring all congestion points.

Moreover, the authorities have deployed 560 police personnel, 100 people from reserve forces, 4 Quick Response Teams, and an NDRF team at the demolition sites and also activated traffic diversion points.

Most of the residents have already moved out, many of them last evening itself, police officials overseeing the evacuation exercise said around at 7.15 am. While the residents, their vehicles and pets had to be moved out by 7 am, private security and other staff will also be removed from the two societies by 1 pm, the officials added.

Mumbai-based Edifice Engineering has been hired for the project and the button will be pressed by Chetan Dutta. Joe Brinkmann, CEO and managing director of Jet Demolitions, a South African-based firm, which will carry out Supertech's illegal Twin Towers demolition along with Edifice Engineering and others, said bringing down the twin towers is one of the most difficult tasks since the building is strong and built in seismic zone. The twin buildings, which comprise 915 flats and are located just nine metres from Emerald Court's Aster-2 apartment block, have been fully rigged with explosives and wired up.

A seven-member team of Jet Demolitions along with Edifice Engineering will bring down the twin towers which will go down as the tallest towers to be demolished in the country.

"We are just making checks for the final day so that there are no disturbances. It is one of the most difficult tasks, building is strong and built in a seismic zone", said Joe Brinkmann while talking to the media. He said, "But we have designed the plan and implemented it to meet the challenges. The progression of the blast -- the buildings will be pulled away from North from aster-2 towards the south and then collapse." He further clarified that Edifice Engineering will be handling the debris, which will be cleaned up within three months.

The towers, part of the Emerald Court, were found to be in violation of multiple regulations regarding construction and have therefore been ordered to be demolished.