Implosion of Radio Network House, Building implosion site in Christchurch, New Zealand.

The Radio Network House implosion involved a 14-story office tower demolished using strategically positioned explosives throughout the structure. The building had sustained irreparable damage from the 2011 earthquake and required removal to clear the site.

The office tower was built in 1986 and stood for 25 years before the 2011 earthquake caused severe structural damage. The implosion occurred later as a significant step in rebuilding the city center following the disaster.

The right to press the detonation button was auctioned on Trade Me, becoming the site's third most-viewed auction. The winning NZ$26,000 bid came from a consortium of demolition contractors, who let the Child Cancer Foundation nominate a six-year-old boy from Queenstown to trigger the blast on 5 August 2012.

The demolition required a safety exclusion zone of about 200 meters around the building to protect spectators and nearby structures. Seismic monitoring equipment tracked ground movements during the event to ensure the procedure remained controlled.

The right to press the button was auctioned on Trade Me, becoming the site's third most viewed auction; the NZ$26,000 winning bid came from a consortium of demolition contractors, who let the Child Cancer Foundation nominate a six-year-old boy from Queenstown to trigger the blast. Some 60 kilograms of explosives were drilled into the support columns. As of 2026 only one further implosion has been carried out in New Zealand.