Half a century of history came to an end this morning, as the cooling towers and chimney at the former Richborough power station were demolished.

It took just 20 seconds to topple one of east Kent's most iconic landmarks, with a series of explosive charges detonated at around 9am.

Thousands of people flocked to vantage points across the area to witness one of the biggest demolition spectacles the county has ever seen.

At around 100 metres tall, the cooling towers and chimney were a feature of the landscape since Richborough power station opened in 1962.

They had not been used since 1996, when the site was closed down.

Roads surrounding the towers were shut around 15 minutes before the giant structures came crashing to the ground but re-opened shortly after the dust had cleared.

An exclusion zone of several hundred metres was also lifted and access to the River Stour and public footpath EE42 restored.

Downfast Demolition Services, a Ramsgate-based firm, carried out the operation and began preparations at 4am.

Several 'sacrifical' cameras were installed to record the demolition right up until they were destroyed by the blast.

KentOnline will have a special report looking back at the history of the site tomorrow.

There will be extensive coverage in next week's Thanet Extra, and the East Kent Mercury will carry Going Going Gone, a 12-page souvenir pullout. There will also be coverage on kmfm News.