TRENTON, Mich. — Part of a shuttered power plant near Detroit was demolished Friday by explosives that turned the hulking structure into piles of rubble and kicked up a wall of dust and flames.
A line of controlled explosives detonated across the base of the former Trenton Channel Power Plant's boiler house around 6 a.m. just before the nine-story, 180-foot (15-meter) tall structure began collapsing along the Detroit River.
DTE Energy officials said the collapse unfolded smoothly and as the utility had planned.
“Once the explosives were lit, the building collapsed upon itself and we were able to safely and successfully bring the boiler house down,” Renee Tomina, DTE Energy's senior vice president of project management organization told The Detroit News.
The coal-burning power plant was retired in 2022 after nearly a century of generating electricity. It was demolished as part of DTE Energy's shift toward clean energy by building a battery storage facility.
When it comes online in 2026, the Trenton Channel Energy Center will be the largest standalone battery energy storage project in the Great Lakes, DTE Energy said. It will be able to store 220 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 40,000 homes, according to the utility.
Until they were demolished in March, the Trenton Channel Power Plant site also featured two 600-foot (183-meter) tall red-and-white striped smokestacks that had long been a local landmark.
Want more from WTOL 11 News?
➡️ Download the WTOL 11 news app for Apple here or get it in the Google store here.
➡️ Get a fresh start to your morning and wrap up your day with the latest news and your WTOL 11 Weather forecast delivered right to your inbox!
WTOL 11's Your Morning Blast and Your Evening Blast deliver stories from northwest Ohio, southeast Michigan and beyond to keep you informed. Click here to get on the list!
➡️ Looking for the lowest current local gas prices? Check out the WTOL 11 gas price tracker, powered by Gas Buddy, here.
➡️ Stay up to date on what's happening in your community with a 24/7 live stream and on-demand content from WTOL 11+. Our free WTOL 11+ apps are available on Roku and Fire TV.
WTOL 11+ features the latest breaking news and weather, plus daily talk shows, coverage of your favorite sports teams from Locked On, fact-checking from VERIFY and the latest trending stories from Daily Blast Live.