To view this site you need Adobe Flash Player and your browser must allow javaScripts. Go here to get the latest Flash Player. SUZANNE K. TAYLOR The crashing action of a truss pull. hole was opened up, the main level–including the rink f loor–was collapsed, because only the basement f loor could support the heavy equipment needed to continue the demolition process. From that point on demolition continued both outside and inside the building. The northeast stair tower was brought down in March, followed quickly by the northwest tower and elevator shaft; all the while large machines resembling dinosaurs chomped away at the seating area out of public view. Then came the fireworks of the demolition: the pulling of the trusses. The Aud was built with twelve steel trusses to hold up One day at Coca Cola field concessionaires were faced with patrons demanding free beers because “dust from The Aud demolition” had allegedly landed in the ones they were drinking. It was a day when no large “pulls” (which could have created that much dust) had taken place, just a lot of leg-pulling at the baseball game. the roof, to eliminate the need for supporting columns in the seating area that would obstruct patrons’ views. These were brought down dramatically, one at a time, to the delight of onlookers, whose numbers grew with each “pull.” Workers started on the roof, cutting through the roof membrane to gain access to the purlins connecting the trusses to each other laterally. I-beams were strategically cut so that the truss could be pulled away from the walls and the next truss cleanly. The pulls began on the east side of the building, the weight of the freed end pulling down the rest of the truss in a wave. Then the finale. No matter how much the site was hosed down an inevitable dust cloud enveloped the scene. Continued on page 68 6 4