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Grain Power Station's chimney, on Isle of Grain, will be blown up at 11am on Wednesday, September 7

The tallest concrete structure ever to be demolished in Britain will be blown up next Wednesday, September 7.

The chimney at the former Grain Power Station, on the Isle of Grain, which is 244 metres, or 801 foot tall, will be blown up by engineers in the morning.

The structure is taller than 55 double decker buses stacked on top of each other and is two- and-a-half times the height of Big Ben.

Scroll down to see how the chimney stacks up against other tall buildings

Grain power station chimney will be blown up next week
Grain power station chimney will be blown up next week

As it blows up around 40,000 tonnes of concrete are to be brought to the ground.

Energy giant, Uniper UK, which owns the site, announced today the chimney, which has been a landmark in Medway for almost 40 years, will be blown up at 11am.

The chimney is the latest stage of pulling down the station, which was closed in 2012 for economic and environmental reasons.

Demolition at the site began in April 2014, and to date, engineers have carried out five demolition events to bring down the main infrastructure of the plant. In June the huge control building came crashing down. Watch here

Since the project began, more than 84,000 tonnes of material has been removed from the site to be recycled, and work is expected to continue until the end of the year.

The chimney coming down will mark the end of an era for many people who have worked at the plant, or live in the area.

However, the existing infrastructure at the former plant has been used to build a new gas-fired power station on the same site which will produce electricity for around a million homes.

The development of Grain B Power Station means the site can continue to provide electricity to homes and businesses across the UK, and support local employment.

Grain Power Station view from Queenborough Harbour Picture: Bob Kitchin
Grain Power Station view from Queenborough Harbour Picture: Bob Kitchin

Bill Cliff, plant manager said: “I’m sure the demolition of the chimney will be an emotional day for the people who have worked at Grain A Power Station, and for those that have become fond of seeing the chimney as a prominent feature on the Medway skyline.

“I would like to say a huge thank you to all the colleagues that have contributed to the successful running of Grain A Power Station, helping it play an important role in the UK’s energy infrastructure for more than 30 years.”

People wanting to watch the detonation should do so at a safe distance and in a location that does not cause any disruption to local traffic.

Uniper will be unable to provide the public with access to a viewing point on site for the event due to limited space once the demolition exclusion zone is in place.

Neil Riley, Head of Demolition added: “We’ve now reached the final controlled demolition at Grain Power Station.

“As is always the case, the health and safety of the public and our colleagues is our number one priority and the blow down of the chimney is the culmination of months of detailed planning with our contractors and local stakeholders.

"The timings for the demolition have also been carefully planned to ensure any impact on the local community is kept to a minimum.”

Grain A was officially opened in 1979 and, and was capable of producing enough electricity to power more than a million homes.

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