Loud bangs were heard across Kent and Medway this morning as part of a power station was blown up.

It was the third phase of demolition work at Grain Power Station and got underway at 8am. Engineers pulled down a building which houses machines used to move oxygen from boilers.

A spokeswoman for E.ON confirmed that everything had gone ahead as planned this morning.

The former oil-fired power station, which was capable of powering more than a million homes, closed down in December 2012 after it was deemed economically impractical in the modern eco-friendly world.

Demolition began in April 2014 and a month later three buildings were blown up and came crashing to the ground.

Then in August three boiler houses as well as accompanying boilers at the Isle of Grain site were razed to the ground by another huge explosion.

Energy giant E.ON and its contractor Brown and Mason have undertaken a phased demolition of the plant and have already blown up steam turbines, the turbine hall
and three of the five boiler houses.

Significant parts of the plant structure remain, including the boiler structures and the 244 metre chimney, these will be demolished at a later date.

Demolition project manager Neil Wright said: “This demolition at Grain Power Station will see around 1,200 tonnes of steel being brought to the ground, processed and removed from site.

“The structures that will be brought down through explosive methods were part of the plant’s main infrastructure, which is being removed from site before we progress towards the final stage of the project.

“The demolition of the plant’s chimney will take place next year.”

Dates for the rest of the plant demolition work have not yet been revealed.

Mr Wright added: “As is always the case, the safety of our colleagues, contractors and the general public is always our top priority.

“Tremendous amount of work has gone in to preparing the site ahead of this demolition to ensure that the process is conducted safely, efficiently and with minimal disruption to local communities, environment and surrounding areas.”