The Lolly Bug
A natural disaster that shocked a community, devastated lolly lovers around the nation and posed a challenging environmental remediation following the fire that destroyed a beloved icon.
After a horrific 24 months for most individuals and businesses in Australia facing social restrictions, lockdowns and uncertainty, it would be hard to believe that things could get any worse; But for one unfortunate local business and it’s fan base with tens of thousands of people around the country, it did.
In early January 2022 a lightning strike started a fire within the centre of the prominent building that quickly set ablaze to thousands of dollars of highly combustible sugary treats resulting in a blaze that although extinguished within hours caused catastrophic structural damage to the building which had been at the location for over 130 years.
Following the fire which destroyed most of the building internally, insurance, engineers and Lithgow City Council conceded that the damage was irreparable and it would be an impossible task to try and salvage the heritage listed structure. Upon this decision, demolition orders were shortly issued advising that the building would need to be removed and disposed of from the site as it’s weakened structure and numerous asbestos containing materials posed major risks for people and the environment.
Einzig Industrial commenced the remediation, demolition and removal works in early February with the total time to complete spanning just 5 days to have the entire structure removed, the site cleared and certified by environmental hygienists assuring the land was free of contaminants and ready to begin construction.
Problematically, the original building had received multiple renovations, extensions and modifications over the past century; This coupled with certain areas either being completely inaccessible or too damaged to be safely accessed without the risk of collapse meant that concealed walls, false ceilings and hidden stockpiles of asbestos sheeting and fragments were constantly discovered during the demolition. The result of which meant that each section of building mechanically removed had to be inspected and sorted over by hand before proceeding to ensure that no cross contamination would occur and that materials could be effectively separated for disposal.
Asbestos ceiling sheets (red) concealed by a false gyprock ceiling below (blue)
A difficult job but one made all the more rewarding knowing that such a well known institution for anyone traveling toward Bathurst from The Blue Mountains is one step closer to being open for business once again.
