City planning Saturday morning demolition of water tower

After more than 70 years standing at Tweedsmuir Street, Flin Flon's water tower is coming down tomorrow.

The tower, one of east Flin Flon's most prominent landmarks, is being demolished and will be partially imploded Saturday morning at around 8 a.m. local time.

Members of the public are asked to keep their distance from the tower to avoid any undue safety risks that could come with the demolition. Residents near the tower have been notified by the City of the activity and a 100-metre radius of the tower will be blocked off by police, security and members of the Flin Flon Fire Department.

"Residents are reminded to be safe and to follow instructions from the authorities," reads an announcement from the City of Flin Flon about the demolition work. The City announcement even includes some suggestions for where onlookers could gather outside the 100-metre zone - places like the North of 53 Consumers' Co-op building parking lot, the Flin Flon skatepark behind Hapnot Collegiate and at the Hapnot parking lot. The work will also be visible from areas of Green Street, Highway 10A and portions of Flinty's Boardwalk.

Construction on the tower began in 1949 and it became fully operational in 1951 - its former look, that of a red-and-white checkerboard pattern, was replaced decades ago by a hockey-puck-shaped blue and yellow facade. As years passed and after the construction of a new water treatment plant, the tower became less and less important to City water infrastructure, finally being phased out of use fully in the 2010s. The tower itself has not been used in at least five years.

Rakowski Cartage and Wrecking, a Winnipeg-based company, has been tasked by the City to do the demolition. Rakowski was also hired by the City to demolish the Flin Flon Aqua Centre in 2020.