THUNDER BAY — At nearly 200 metres, or 650 feet, the stack at the Thunder Bay Generating Station is believed to be the tallest structure in Northwestern Ontario.
The waterfront landmark is likely going to be taken down, now that Ontario Power Generation has sold the Mission Island power plant and property to a company that specializes in demolition.
It took some doing, but Thunder Bay filmmaker Alan Auld last weekend captured unique aerial images of the stack which he has posted to his Imagine Films Facebook page.
Auld needed clearance from Nav Canada, the not-for-profit corporation that operates Canada's civil air navigation system, to fly his drone over the generating station.
"Legally, a drone can only fly 400 feet in the air. There is a way [to go higher] but it requires coordination...I got the paperwork in order and they approved it," Auld said.
Nav Canada allowed him to exceed the height restriction but required the drone to stay within 200 feet of the stack.
Auld plans to go back to record the destruction of the stack, whenever it's demolished.
"This was mostly a test shot that I did, because I want to be ready...we haven't been told when they're actually going to drop it. When that happens I'm sure there's going to be people around to watch, and I can't fly over people, so I'm going to have to do another site survey to see where we can do that," he said.
Auld admitted to being worried about other drone owners who may be tempted to do something illegal or risky, and thinking all they need to do is stay off the power plant property.
He said Budget Demolition has told him it will be in touch about its plans.
"They have documented a lot of the things that they have brought down. It's quite interesting to watch, but here, it's a piece of Thunder Bay history, just like when Pool 6 came down many years ago. People took the time to watch it, and now we have the technology to watch it from the air."
Auld described the aerial images of the stack as "amazing," saying they allow him to imagine what it was like for the men who built it, and how much they must have appreciated the view when they got to the top.
