TWO chimneys at Tilbury Power Station are set to be demolished next week in the seventh controlled demolition at the site.

The 170m tall chimneys, which have been there since 1969, will be brought down simultaneously by controlled explosions next Thursday at 8am.

They are the tallest standing structures in Essex but it will take less than 10 seconds for the concrete chimneys to crumble to the ground.

RWE Generation, which manages the site, warned: “There are no safe and accessible areas around the perimeter of the station which would provide views of the chimneys coming down and no public car parking available in the area.”

Demolition will finish at the end of 2018, and there are plans for a Tilbury Energy Centre on the site, which will feature various types of gas turbines and an energy storage facility.