Unexploded Demo Charges Found at Demo Site

South Charleston, West Virginia A former headquarters building for Union Carbide was demolished under a controlled detonation operation as part of the development by plans for the University of Charleston. Demolition crews from O'Rourke Wrecking, the contractor in charge of the demolition project, set up explosive charges around various sections of the old building known as building 82 as part of the demolition project.

Local officials took advantage of the demolition operation by scheduling a search and rescue training exercise following the implosion. The exercise involved the Kanawha County Sheriff's Department Bomb Squad, Police and Firefighters. During the training exercise, first responders found unexploded demolition charges scattered throughout the rubble. A total of 10 unexploded demolition charges were recovered in all. Authorities are unsure why the demolition charges failed to explode but officials from the state Fire Marshal's Office announced that they did not expect that any charges would be filed against the demolition company because there was no indications that the mishap was intentional. The charges were safely disposed of by the Bomb Squad.