Athens:
A historical building in the centre of Athens was destroyed in 14 seconds on Sunday.
The Navy Veterans Fund building was demolished in a controlled explosion.
Athens Mayor Nikitas Kaklamanis decided the building must go so as to create a new square covering 1,300 sq meters in an area of the city, where crime and squalor have become rife over the last few years.
The derelict building was abandoned from the '80s and was bought by the municipality of Athens as part of a programme aimed at improving the city centre.
The demolition workers first unrolled the fuse wires, prepared the fuses for a controlled explosion, then there was a countdown and after several small explosions the last one brought the building down.
Dust rose around buildings nearby as the structure collapsed.
Locals came out to see the event and watched from behind barriers at a safe distance.
A green park will now be created where the building had earlier stood.
The Navy Veterans Fund building was demolished in a controlled explosion.
Athens Mayor Nikitas Kaklamanis decided the building must go so as to create a new square covering 1,300 sq meters in an area of the city, where crime and squalor have become rife over the last few years.
The derelict building was abandoned from the '80s and was bought by the municipality of Athens as part of a programme aimed at improving the city centre.
The demolition workers first unrolled the fuse wires, prepared the fuses for a controlled explosion, then there was a countdown and after several small explosions the last one brought the building down.
Dust rose around buildings nearby as the structure collapsed.
Locals came out to see the event and watched from behind barriers at a safe distance.
A green park will now be created where the building had earlier stood.
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