At precisely 12:00 noon, the two 160-meter-tall cooling towers of the Gundremmingen nuclear power plant in Germany were demolished in front of thousands of onlookers. The entire operation lasted only a few seconds — immediately after the controlled explosion, a cloud of dust rose, and from the two massive reinforced concrete structures, only a pile of rubble remained.
Explosion experts had carefully timed the operation according to weather conditions. “With this kind of bad weather, you can only get a good blast,” said demolition specialist Gerd Vogel. The absence of fog and the presence of rain created optimal conditions for the demolition, according to German media reports.
The event marks a symbolic turning point in the decommissioning process of the Gundremmingen nuclear plant. Beyond the demolition of existing structures, plans are underway to build a large battery storage facility, a gas-fired power station, and expand the local solar energy network.
The tower materials will be recycled and used in road construction. However, the complete end of nuclear energy at Gundremmingen has yet to arrive — the plant’s old nuclear fuel rods are still stored in temporary facilities until a final disposal site is found.4
