 The charge went off just after 1000BST on Tuesday |
The last visible sign of a south Wales town's industrial history has been reduced to rubble with the demolition of a chimney at a former steelworks. A large crowd, including many former steel workers, watched as the stack at the Bryngwyn site in Gorseinon near Swansea vanished in a cloud of dust.
Ninety defiant steelworkers accompanied by a lone drummer marched out when the plant shut in June 2001.
A century ago Gorseinon was one of the richest towns in Wales due to steel.
Bryngwyn was the first plant in Wales to close in Corus' massive restructuring in which 3,000 steel jobs were lost.
Other Welsh plants hit by job losses included Ebbw Vale, Shotton and Llanwern.
Former steelworker and town mayor Malcolm Curtice pushed the button that brought down the stack just after 1000BST on Tuesday.
"Working here was my first job when I left school in 1954," he said.
"I've got mixed feelings today. Gorseinon was built on the steel industry and was once of the richest towns in Wales.
 It took seconds before the stack disappeared in a cloud of dust |
"As kids we used to come down here and they would give us a ride into the furnace where you could feel the heat - something they would never do now even if it was still open.
"It was a disaster when Bryngwyn shut. Some of the boys got jobs at Trostre in Llanelli but not that many.
"A lot have had to go into the service industry to find work."
The Gorseinon Development Trust has since been set-up to redevelop the area and bring new employment to the town.
Last month, Swansea council secured �1.25m to help redevelop the Garngoch industrial estate, which is expected to result in the creation of more than 100 jobs.
A year ago a 280-year-old family-owned firm moved its production from London to the industrial estate.
Comyn Ching (Solray) Ltd, which manufactures radiant heating panels, is moving into a purpose-built 26,000 sq ft unit.
Persimmon Homes is currently seeking planning permission for 371 houses on the Bryngwyn site.
 Clive Steward was a third generation steelworker |
Clive Steward, a third generation steelworker, lives close by.
"There was great comradeship working here," he said.
"I think seven of us started on the same day and we are still life long friends.
"I came down to see the lads march out on the day it closed.
"If my father or grandfather came back today they never have thought of this - you had jobs for life back then."
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It was a disaster when Bryngwyn shut. Some of the boys got jobs at Trostre in Llanelli but not that many 
