Watertower Geesthacht, Water tower in Krümmel, Geesthacht, Germany.
Watertower Geesthacht is a 30-metre cylindrical water tower on the Geest slope above the Elbe, built of reinforced concrete clad in brick. Pilasters divide the masonry above the base into fields, each with three windows, one per storey. The upper section projects slightly and ends in a ring of small windows beneath a domed roof with a lantern.
The tower was built in 1916/1917 for the new nitrocellulose factory, which arose from the Hindenburg Program during World War I. After 1945 the factory buildings were dismantled or blown up; the water tower, the administration building and a fire station survived. It was listed as a monument in 1997, and in 2010 a ruin stabilization costing about €400,000 was carried out, shared by Vattenfall and a federal fund.
The tower is one of the last surviving structures of Alfred Nobel's Krümmel dynamite factory, founded in 1865. The Förderkreis Industriemuseum Geesthacht e.V. leads historical walks across the former factory grounds and has campaigned for the tower's preservation for years.
The tower stands on the Geest slope above the Elbe in Krümmel, half hidden by trees. It is fenced off and closed because of the risk of collapse, so it can only be viewed from outside. The Förderkreis Industriemuseum Geesthacht e.V. leads historical walks across the former factory grounds.
The tower is not operated by Vattenfall: the Swedish energy company owns it, as it does the neighbouring Krümmel nuclear power plant. The structure itself has been closed and fenced off for years because of the risk of collapse, and in 2010 a ruin-securing project cost around €400,000, shared by Vattenfall and a federal fund for listed buildings.
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