A year after a fire damaged it irrepairably, the Bank of Lisbon building in Johannesburg was demolished in a controlled explosion Sunday, and a video of it is going viral. The 22-storey building was deemed unfit for occupation after a structural assessment following the fire last September. The fire claimed the lives of three Johannesburg firefighters. Johannesburg's Emergency Management Services tweeted a clip of the demolition and hoped the demolition will bring closure to the friends and families of the fallen firefighters. Watch the video here: #BankOfLisbon is gone, this brings a close to a painful chapter to the families and colleagues of the fallen firefighter. We will never forget the sacrifice you made #JobugsBravest pic.twitter.com/MhipvQqtHS — City of Joburg EMS (@CityofJoburgEMS) November 24, 2019 According to local reports, the structure was demolished in less than 30 seconds using around 894 kg of explosives, with several Johannesburg residents looking on. Tasneem Motara, Gauteng Member of the Executive Council for Infrastructure and Property Development told Euro News that it was one of the most difficult demolitions they have worked on. Around 2000 people were reportedly evacuated from buildings near the bank before the demolition.
