A portion of the old LaFayette Sunrise Hosiery Mill was to be leveled in a controlled demolition Tuesday afternoon. But wet weather and other problems caused the blast to fail.

LaFayette Sunrise Hosiery Mill opened in 1903 and shut down in 2004.

The owner of the property, Mac Powell, said the property has been purchased — he de-clined to name the buyer — and the new owner plans to build on the site.

Powell said there are three structures — two elevator shafts and a staircase — that must be leveled.

On Tuesday Powell’s crew attempted to level one of the elevator shafts. Twenty holes were drilled in the shaft and each hole was filled with a quarter-stick of dynamite.

Unfortunately, the rain caused wet wires and two failed attempts. On the third attempt, the blast occurred but didn’t bring down the shaft.

Powell said they would attempt the blast again as soon as possible.

Officers from the LaFayette Police Department were on hand Tuesday. They will be on-hand again for the demolition when it’s re-attempted.

Walker County Messenger