Two boiler towers were blown up at a thermal power plant in the southeastern city of Ulsan on Tuesday to help the search for four workers trapped under a third tower that collapsed last week.
Towers 4 and 6, which flanked Tower 5, had been an impediment in search operations because of the risk that they too could crumble.
Tower 5 collapsed last Thursday, trapping seven workers, including three whose bodies have been recovered. Two have been located but are feared dead, while another two remain missing.
Officials said search and rescue operations will resume within three hours of the towers' demolition, which took place as scheduled at noon, after safety measures are put in place.
Each tower was 63 meters tall and fell in the opposite direction from the sea.
Around 70 personnel on eight teams will be sent inside the rubble to search for the missing, officials said earlier. Cranes and other heavy equipment will also aid in the effort.
The power plant belongs to the Ulsan branch of Korea East-West Power Co., a state-run utility company.
At the time of its collapse, the 60-meter-tall Tower 5 had been in the process of being demolished after 40 years of use ending in 2021. (Yonhap)
