Crews working nonstop to prep for implosion of Keystone Towers

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - In just a few days, Keystone Towers should be a pile of rubble. But preparation for the implosion will go down to the wire as crews work to get all of the explosives in place in time.

At the site Wednesday, hard hat in place, Eric Kelly, owner of Advanced Explosives Demolition, worried about his team getting the job done on time.

"It's almost an impossible job, " he said. "You come out at night, and you'll see the candles burning, so to speak."

As you look around the site, you can see progress. The walls are being weakened. Explosives, eventually as much as 400 pounds of them, are being installed. Debris is being removed. But Kelly said his crew has faced an uphill battle at the Keystone Towers Complex from the start.

"When we undertook this project there was no drawings, nobody was originally allowed in the building," he said.

Part of the problem was the mess inside the buildings.

"You have to take all the sheet rock, the chairs, the furniture, the garbage out of there," Kelly said.

But the bigger problem was asbestos. The dangerous substance had to be dealt with before any demolition, said John Bartholomew, a spokesperson for the Indianapolis Department of Metropolitan Development, which is overseeing the project

"Whenever you demolish even just a house, let alone a building like this, you always have to test for asbestos. If you find it, you have to abate it before you demo it," he said.

That process meant Kelly and his crew didn't have access to the site until late last week.

Asked whether he and his crew will get it done, he said: "Well, I can tell you this, better to fail trying then to not try at all."

Kelly said he and the nine members of his team will be working non-stop to finish in time for the implosion, scheduled for 8 a.m. Sunday.

"We got a lot of good hearts here and a lot of people who will work hard," he said, adding: "We'll get it done."

City officials encourage people interested in watching the implosion of the 15-story building to do so from home. 24-Hour News 8 will show the implosion live with multiple cameras. It will also stream live here on wishtv.com

There are two public viewing areas for people who want to watch in person. People can watch at Living Water Fellowship Church, 2902 E. 46th St., and Clay’s Enterprise Auto Repair Shop, 2750 E. 46th St.

Police will close some roads in the area at 7 a.m. Stretches of Keystone Avenue, 46th Street, Binford Boulevard and Fall Creek Parkway.