Hospital smoke stack coming down

OSHAWA -- Later this month, a familiar piece of the Oshawa landscape will disappear.

On Saturday, Aug. 16, the 205-foot-tall smoke stack at Lakeridge Health Oshawa will come down as part of continuing efforts to update the facility.

Hospital spokeswoman Amanda Roffey said the structure will be broken apart piece by piece, using pincers set atop a large crane.

"For safety reasons, there won't be an explosion or anything," she said.

The street and sidewalk nearby will be outfitted with steel plating to prevent damage and curious onlookers will be kept at bay by fencing and security guards.

The smoke stack is part of the hospital's old heating plant, which dates back to 1910 and was originally fuelled by coal.

In 1970, the boilers were converted to operate on natural gas fuel oil and the original short chimney was replaced with the tall brick stack that can be seen today.

Over the years, the smoke stack was used primarily to incinerate medical waste.

The old plant was last active in 2006, but the stack continued to be used for the backup generators until mid-2007.

The hospital now has a new, $30-million Central Utilities Plant, which features energy efficient cooling units and massive boilers able to heat enough water to fill 12 Olympic-size pools twice daily.

The new system also includes 130,000 litres of fuel storage for emergency generators and boilers in the event of a blackout -- enough to heat and cool the hospital for one week.

Watch Oshawa This Week and www.durhamregion.com for photos and video of the smoke stack coming down.