Boom!

Down came another lump of the old Kingsnorth Power Station. According to their spokesperson “The timing for this particular demolition has been planned to coincide with low tide, therefore causing minimal disruption to wading birds and other local wildlife." So what did the Black-headed Gulls do?

The part demolished today is marked at the top of the google earth image by an orange rectangle, and is overshadowed by a much larger part of the old station (yellow rectangle).

The gulls that took umbrage were from the RSPB Nor marsh reserve, marked in yellow. Birds on the closer (and much larger) Bishop saltings colony stayed, in the main, put. Also the birds outside the breached wall marking the boundary of the RSPB reserve, on Friars saltings, largely ignored the explosion.

I have two theories.

The first I liked, but now no so much. The Nor birds are mainly on collapsed seawalls. The marsh was breached by the floods of 1953, and has been eroding ever since (the breach is just above and to the right of the markers). The walls have fallen into disrepair and have little vegetation in many places. The boulders can be 'wobbly'. So, was it down to the vibration?

Problem was that little yellow circle- the birds on one of the few remaining spots not to go under on a spring tide. They went as well. If it was vibration, surely other birds on saltings would have taken fright as well?

So, theory two- and this I'm still liking. Neither the Bishop nor Friars colonies could have seen the collapsing structure- just witnessed the resultant dust cloud. Their visual alarms were never went off.

Bloomin' racket they make at the colonies, small chance of hearing an explosion- even one that a chum of mine heard over five miles away. They shouldn't get too comfortable; they will have bigger worries the next few days with the high April spring tides. I'm expecting just as much mayhem and debris.