Tagged: implosion

A 17-story hotel was imploded on Sunday after months of delay.

The old Pallas Hotel on Canal Street was blown up at 8 a.m. with 400 tons of explosives, creating a huge plume of smoke. State officials say the demolition went smoothly but inspections continue.

The city closed several streets and Interstate 10 before and after the demolition.

The demolition took place to make way for the new University Medical Center, a hospital being built to replace the old Charity Hospital, which was closed after Hurricane Katrina.

State officials say they will send buses to the Iberville public housing development to move residents before Sunday's planned implosion of a former hotel near.

The Times-Picayune reports some residents worried that the implosion, planned for Sunday morning, would shower the development with dust.

Iberville's 400 households are not required to evacuate but "out of an abundance of caution," officials will move residents with respiratory issues from the complex Sunday morning, said Christina Stephens, spokeswoman for the state's Division of Administration.