Redcar blastfurnace demolished after plea to save industrial landmark fails

British steelworks plant in Teesside that once made 10,000 tonnes of iron a day reduced to rubble amid industry decline

There was a countdown and a boom and within seconds a heavy chunk of Britain's once proud and world-beating industrial heritage was gone.

I've got mixed emotions," said Tony Evans after watching the demolition of the Redcar blast furnace, in Teesside, at 9am on Wednesday. He had worked there from fitter to production manager for decades; he had met a young engineer who became his wife, and had made friendships that would last for ever.