Three Rivers Stadium Implosion

[EFreezy0816]

Wow...so much of me watching football on TV as a kid, and how I fell in love with the game--happened in that building. By far, I feel the Steelers of the 70's would destroy any team of its respective era. First to win 3 Lombardi trophies, and won 4 in 6 seasons..hadn't been done before or after. Not the Packers. Not the Niners. Not the Cowboys. Not the Raiders. Not the Dolphins. And last but not least, NOT the Patriots. Thanks for the memories Three Rivers!!!

[shadowmwo]

I wish they did that ti heinz field too. Go ravens!

[MrDejavu2u]

I remember, and saw it, from Mt Washington...wow, the sound still reverberates in my head. I saw many great concerts, (as security from 89-92), Steelers games, etc there..it was cold that day! Nice camera work!

[madringking1119]

i saw the whole thing from mt. washington i was freezing my ass off

[blobbergobber]

my dad shook hands with roberto clemente, swear on my life

[schancey100]

I was sad when I watched this video live on TV. I have fond memories of being at 3 Rivers when I was a kid. Now I enjoy going to PNC Park but I think the memories of 3 Rivers will stay in my heart forever.

[FairBolFL]

Soon enough I think, Municipal Stadium here in Fort Lauderdale (longtime home for spring training and minor league baseball) will go the way of Three Rivers. After the Orioles left for Sarasota, the stadium hosted a semi-pro team, but it has been sitting vacant for a year or two now. Let's face it, no minor league team will play here for the foreseeable future, and the days of spring baseball in Fort Lauderdale seem done. Might go see this happen when they bring it down.

[mbaehner]

@ Bendyournoodle

The actual date of this implosion was February 11, 2001. The Steelers played the 2000 season @ Three Rivers.

[Bendyournoodle]

I remember Three Rivers well, and I remember it going down in 2000. Great stadium, great place, the place a hellava lot of noise for Pirates/Steelers rallies.

I'll remember thee well, always, Three Rivers. :D

[Sgtcope69]

that was a sad day

[jackthedrummer747]

man i wish i walked into this every gameday instead of heinz field

[RockeyJesse20]

I could hear the blimp in the beginning!! lol

[andrewlubarski]

I was there that day in Point Park. I remember the place being packed and i was fighting for a spot on the river walk. A few minutes after the implosion the wind brought the dust and dirt across the river right into downtown. You couldn't see anything. Three Rivers was a cool stadium but lacked character that Heinz field and PNC Park bring to the city today. Still have great memories and proud to be from Pittsburgh

[Coastergeekperson04]

They should have staged a fake game there, with stunt doubles and hidden safety equipment, as a publicity stunt.

[sexymanfrombigjapan]

What if there was a game going on

[patricknedz]

such a waste, demolishing buildings like this, it took time and effort building these places and materials, it doesnt just come up just like that, someone had to build it.

[FireRam419]

I watched this from Mt. Washington (friends deck). Pretty cool!! I just watched the Texas Stadium implosion and wanted to revisit ours.

[MHannigan100]

WTF how can you cheer for this? Honestly I think I will be telling my kids about 3 rivers like my dad talked abut forbs field.

[jcjr87]

So much time to build, so little time to destroy.

They really needed a new park though...Three Rivers was a concrete monster.

[Aldapeperockson11]

Heinz Field is better

[Malibunightrider]

this was a beautiful stadium PNC park is nice and ill say this the parking lot they made this stadium into is HUGE i miss this place tho

[jbrabec22]

Did you hear them secondary explosions!?!?!?!? Conspiracy I say!

[steve0englewoodFL]

The last home of the great Roberto Clemente! No respect. ------"We Are Family"

[heatseeker213]

and what was wrong with this stadium?

[Cyndonia]

@heatseeker213 nothing.. it was a beautiful stadium

[THEVELCH]

Nothing, McClatchy and Rooney just wanted a "Better One." Rooney got one and deservedly so, McClatchy, not so much.

[ronphlf]

@THEVELCH How is expropriating money from private individuals and diverting that money to the Rooney, McClatchy, and Lemeiux a "deservedly" action?  It's theft by any definition. The ignorance of this region is staggering.

[KutWrite]

@ronphlf Actually, the voters voted down the bonds for a new stadium 3 times. So, the City Robbers dynamited this one. Anything to rape the "Sheeple" and enrich insiders. You can bet the City Council got new skyboxes at the new football & baseball stadii.

[may12punk]

A kk z knapp i wish they have nver done that because i nver got to see it in person even thoe i am a die hard steeler fan for 21 years i wsh they would ceep that stadium up to this day because there was a lot of history in that stadium .but they didint and that is a bunch of bs

[EvilFrog9]

Wasn't this done by some famous demolition crew? I think I remember hearing that they've done tons of demolitions like this

[SixFeetUndr101]

yes, the Loizeaux family did the demo work on 3 Rivers. There have been a bunch of documentarys on the History Channel and National Geographic Channel about them over the years.

[codymo32791]

So much history in that stadium.

[monstrmigit]

it went down very fast! COOL!!!!

[sinistermoon]

Awesome.

[windtalkers1993]

Led Zeppelin took a concert there in 1973

[lakings13]

they should have left the Pirates inside !!

[insaneiaq]

lol. I got a good laugh outta that!

[dingdongditch1000]

I also wish that the Marlins owner was in there!!!

[MrHartfordHockey]

hepuinza ?

[doubleglock187]

@lakings13 And the Super Bowl runner up Steelers.

[jkozar1]

my dad took me down there, I remember we were right on the bank of the river and how the dust accually showed up on local weather radar

[chubbyguerrero]

That is Awesome! We don't get to see any of that from the dumpt of a town I live in.

[Hornet85]

The first round of explosion wasn't meant to bring the building down

[ronphlf]

@Hornet85 The first explosions are det-cord, which are used to set the main timed charges.

[SpeedDemons1983]

DON'T DO IT! aww too late

[dmac752]

its unbelievable that a building that has 30 years of history in its walls can just be gone liek that in 20 seconds

[Spation]

By my count, it only took eight seconds for the walls to go.

[Intelpentium54321]

more like 10

[stupidjunk878]

9/11 commission said this was entirely natural

[mrzeegrr]

The Pirate and Steeler comments are funny. Did you notice A Super Bowl?

I like Pittsburgh, it's a real town.

[hrdnoclfe]

Hmm..I agree with the Pirate comment..but I think you should turn on the tv on Sundays in the fall, pretty sure your looking at a Steeler dynasty...

[dingdongditch1000]

The day that the Pittsburg Steelers and Pittsburg Pirates dynasties died!!! They will never be reborn!!!

[akp1121]

PittsburgHHHHHHHH.

[revelationstudier999]

agree with the Pirates comment.... but are you really so thick by saying that the Steelers are dead?....PSSSST, guess what? 2 Superbowls since they demolished the place.

[Graydon902]

My parents live 10 miles away in Fox Chapel, and they told me they heard the explosions that morning. I guess the sound echoed through the river valleys!

[SixFeetUndr101]

Horrible, Horrible shape. Even after be refit several times. Pipes leaked and concrete crumbled.

[ronphlf]

The strategy is called "planned obsolescence", and the tactic used is "deferred maintenance".

The same concept can be demonstrated at your home if you fail to maintain the systems as required: pipes will break, roofs will leak, paint will peel, mice will enter.

The same "tactic" is being used to destroy the unique architectural gem called the Civic Arena, which could be adaptively reused as Pittsburgh's high speed rail terminal.

[taylorbruney]

Was it in bad shape? It was only 30 years old.

[datkidd983]

i even forgot the pirtes we actually a fuckin team lmao fuckin losers

[RockstarStatus09]

hey i was over there on the bridge

[sxwrulz]

The best play ever in that stadium the Immaculate Reception.

[Deano042]

totally agree there

[ronphlf]

I agree. Three Rivers Stadium was like the Roman Colosseum. Our warriors took to the field to engage in battle with opponents in a place that was loud, raucous, and more foreboding than Heinz Field. It was a "mans" arena. It felt strong, permanent, and unyielding much like the name of the team. Heinz Field, well, it looks like an erector set that hasn't been finished. Weak, lackluster, wobbly, frankly ugly, however the view of our city is magnificent.

[exiledrabbit]

@ronphlf

agreed!

[exiledrabbit]

@ronphlf

PNC Park is very nice though

[DeadEye8541]

@ronphlf Your right, You would think they could of done a lot better for the greatest football team of all time

[shortziznice]

i understand the pain felt by pirates fans here...im a yankee fan..so im gonna have a lot to deal with wen my stadium is taken down

[PwnageDirector]

r.i.p three rivers we stil miss ya

[davidm8985]

From a baseball perspective, PNC Park is a million times better. You people in Pittsburgh area had a very good trade. I've been to 12 MLB stadiums and PNC is the best. I'm not even a pirates fan, but a White Sox fan. We had one of the most intimate old fashioned ballparks and we had a horrible trade for US Cellular Field. I'd take PNC Park any day. I understand there are memories and that stuff, but be happy with what you have now. From a steelers view, I think 3 rivers was more meaningful

[calibermoon]

Yes!! PNC park IS a million times better than other ballparks. But to what end? The Pirates stink!!

[calibermoon]

Three Rivers Stadium was a stadium that held the honor of 4 Steelers Super Bowl Championship seasons, and 2 Pirates World Series Championship season. It was a beautiful stadium, with a beautiful name. I cried when she fell.

Now we have a football field named after KETCHUP, and a baseball park named after a BANK!!! I'm so disappointed that tradition has fallen to commercialism nowadays. What's next, sponsors rename our teams too. I can only imagine the Heinz Steelers and the PNC Pirates :(

[XBarajasX]

Interesting point of view!

But in the world there exists cases like that from very long time ago, for example the soccer teams PSV (Philips Sport Vereniging) in Holland, Bayer Leverkusen in Germany and more recently the New York "Red Bulls"; so.. commercialize team's names is nothing new.

Anyways, it's hard to imagine that NFL or MLB teams would be able do that.

[goldendome10383]

Keep in mind that Heinz and PNC are both pittsburgh companies

[ronphlf]

Naming a privately owned team after ketchup is acceptable, however not a publicly owned, tax payer financed facility. If the tax payers are carrying the majority of the debt, shouldn't it be called "Tax Payer Stadium"

[calibermoon]

Your absolutely correct; any owner of ANY privately owned BUSINESS has ABSOLUTE NAMING RIGHTS!

I guess I'm just old fashioned. Distinctive names like Jack Murphy Stadium are much more respectfull than Qualcomm stadium, because Jack Murphy was a real person who loved sports. Not some business using a stadium as an AD tool.

Heinz field should have been named Rooney Stadium.

And PNC park should have been named Forbes Field.

But of course, I'm an extremely biased Pittsburgh fan:)

*smiles*

[Graydon902]

Yinz an'at are jagoffs!

[SylaBull]

lmao...but really? Heinz is a Pittsburgh Landmark...You cant think of Heinz and not think of Pittsburgh though...I mean I see where you are coming from but I bet Heinz is more recognizable around the globe than our teams, or any team for that matter...I like the fact its named that..

[calibermoon]

Yes, your right!! Heinz is the best Ketchup in the world IMHO!!

But what do you want? Do you want the stadium name to reflect the sport in which it was intended, or some corp willing spend the naming rights for what is basically ANOTHER GIGANTIC ADVERTISEMENT!!

I can guarantee you, STEELERS are known around the world more widely than Heinz Ketchup.

Basically, Let us name the Stadium after the sport, or an Important person of that sport it was intended.

[88rman]

will Heinz field was going to be called Rooney field but Heinz put money to help finish it. so thay swich it. if you must know how i know this my dad had a grate job a Three Rivers Stadium. but the Nuttings f#ck him and more people out of jobs. it is bs that thay did this but that is just the way it is.

[4JayeP]

I can't stand corporate whore stadiums either!!!! 'Three Rivers Stadium", "The Vet", "Shea Stadium", "Candlestick Park", "The Polo Grounds" those are stadium names. "Fed Ex' Stadium, "Monster Cable Park" "Three Com" those just sound plain fuckin' stupid !!!

[RaidersBlack84]

You are right. The only time that would work is when the product name fits the city description. Like Heinz Field is perfect for a Pittsburgh stadium (PNC Park, not so much).

[jaypax04]

I miss that stadium =( ...Now we have an ugly one with a good team, and an amazing one with the worst sports franchise in History.

[pacmanghostx]

I'm not a Pirates fan, but you are horrifically wrong when you call them the worst sports franchise in history.

You have five championships, and need I bring up the Roberto Clemente era? I assume that you have no idea of what the Pirates were like before 2000.

[UHOhes]

16 year losing steak they do suck even before the year 2000

[frenchfrey65]

@pacmanghostx I'm no pirates fan either, and i can read and remember their good times, from the first ever world series game 7 walk off by Mazerowski, to Clemente, but for the past 17 years, damn, they have been bad... Worse than the WW2 Phillies who lost 15 years in a row, I honestly wish this season out of pity like in the NFL for Detroit Lions, the get to the playoffs lol

[jldmurray13]

@pacmanghostx  the pirates are the worst team in history have you ever seen a game they are pathedic but fun to watch and they also have extremly cheap seats at PNC Park LOL

[razorslice17]

The Pirates are the first team in sports history to have 17 straight seasons of losing. No matter what they did way back in the day, they've sucked ass for years and years

[nickr912]

@pacmanghostx before 1993 actually... all losing seasons since then

[ronphlf]

@nickr912 Before 1979, last time they made it to the World Series. If you want to go see a team lose, go see the Pirates.

[nickr912]

@ronphlf I absolutly agree... I wasn't arguing, I'm saying before 2000 were even bad, like if he knew what they were like in 1993 they'd still be bad... Buccos deff blow

[penske13]

i don't know....things like this ive me no joy at all. the decades of history that unfolded there, to see it all gone and to know that it stops right there is just a little sad to me.

[jtm12180]

i still weep at watching these videos. should have put 75 million into it and refurbished it. the history that flew away with that dust is hard to comprehend. the pirates don't deserve the stadium they have. taxpayers spent 200 million on PNC park and the pirates and even cough up enough money for a .500 season.

[colster4life]

It is a total waste of U.S. taxpayers money when the likes of Three Rivers, Veterans, etc. get demolished only after a few decades. At least use them for the less attractive MLB/NFL fixtures.

[dlaniado]

What can I say.... Perhaps I watched the most exciting game of my life at 3Rs... Steelers vs Dolphins... went to extra time.. Fall of 94. Such a shame they tore the stadium down.

[thugie1]

Well they can't raze my memories. An excited kid enjoying a pirates game with my grandfather at three rivers back in 1979.

[dudesef2]

whoo thats crazy

[favrefan14]

i dont believe that any stadium should get torn down just because its "old". re use them for something else.

itll be totally different when yankee stadium goes down..the cheers, wont be there. that my friend, is a going to be a pointless destruction.

[ronphlf]

Three Rivers was a fine building, it just needed some rehab. Now, the Pittsburgh Civic Arena is a unique building, one of very few with a retractable dome. We should reuse the Civic Arena. Its an architectural gem.

[JunkBoy1995]

ya it is but its probably gonna be used as parking for the new stadium which sucks

(ps. the dome only opens 1/4 of the way [not sure if thats the right amount] since they put the scoreboard in, which would probaly completely open if they're able to take it down)

[dwtsf]

I live in San Francisco, can't wait for the day Candlestick Park is imploded!!!

[ronphlf]

I remember the day of the earthquake, and seeing it unfold on live TV at Candlestick. Why not just let it fall that way? lol.

[HaHaStuPadasso]

Yeah, especially when Pittsburgh is struggling economically.  The last thing you want to do is waste a billion dollars on new stadiums

[ExtremeToad123]

They still have some of the seats from the stadium at the nearby Carneige Sportscenter.

[ronphlf]

Couldn't agree with you more. Who ever heard of subsidizing millionaire, privately owned business that generates nothing for our economy. That quarter billion dollars would have been better spent building a bullet-train from the east through Pittsburgh, or lowering taxes, or enticing real jobs. Boondoggle!!!!!

[minnieosbourne]

Waste of a damn fine stadium. I remember my host mom bitching about the fact that the other stadiums were built without anybody wanting them. That and the money situation.

[backwardselbow]

It took them months to clean up that parking lot...

[KuraiMorgan]

clean up must be a bitch