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Sleeping residents were woken by a large bang this morning as the final part of a historic power station on the River Thames was demolished.
The 215m chimney at Littlebrook in Dartford - which was the second highest in the UK - was detonated at 8am.
WATCH: The moment Littlebrook chimney comes down. Video courtesy of Tim Harrold.
It was accompanied by a large bang which could be heard as far away as Allhallows.
This was the sixth and final explosion, carried out by contractors Brown and Mason, at the site since the power station was closed in 2015 and the decision was made to bring it down.
The demolition firm set up an exclusion zone around the perimeter of the power station as a safety precaution.
Drivers pulled up on the roadside to wave goodbye to the crumbling concrete structure.
A short rolling road block was also put in place on the Dartford Crossing to avoid motorists driving across the bridge becoming distracted.
Its destruction came despite a last-minute plea to save it from Gravesham MP Adam Holloway.
He emailed fellow Kent MP and undersecretary of state for the Arts, Heritage and Tourism, Helen Whately, to call for the final explosion to be stopped.
Tony Mack, from Longfield, who has campaigned for years to save the chimney had even threatened to chain himself to it to stop the demolition.
But it is understood that security around the site was beefed up this morning in case of any protest.
The power station stopped operating four years ago and parts of it have since been demolished.
Mr Mack suggested it would make a perfect home for concerts, running tracks, indoor football, a skateboard park, and heritage and history exhibitions.
"I'm absolutely gutted," he said. "If there was anything I could have done I would have."
"Littlebrook was special, we won't get another like it".
The former engineer thanked those who supported him but said sadly their actions had come too late.
“This is such a worthy project and the chimney has stood for over 60 years and been a beacon of north Kent," he said.
"If only Dartford had done something three months ago."
The power station had to cease operating in March 2015 after opting out of an EU directive which dealt with air pollutants created by the burning of fossil fuels.
In September two YouTubers climbed up the chimney to capture some amazing pictures.
