Kingdome

The Kingdome, officially known as the "King County Domed Stadium", and often referred to as simply "The Dome", was an indoor sports and entertainment arena owned and operated by King County, Washington. It was located at the north end of Seattle's Industrial District, just south of Pioneer Square. The building was completed in 1976 on reclaimed tideflat land formerly occupied by the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway's freight yards. It served as home to the Seattle Mariners, Seahawks, and Supersonics for several years. The Kingdome was demolished by implosion in 2000, the footprint now occupied by Qwest Field.

Roof Incident

The most notorious event in the stadium's history took place on July 19, 1994, when four 26 pound waterlogged ceiling tiles collapsed in the vacant stadium just hours before a scheduled Seattle Mariners game. The cause was the stadium's poorly maintained concrete roof, which, by 1993, was leaking badly. A plan to repair the roof involved stripping the original exterior sealant and pressure washing the exterior. This pressure washing resulted in seepage through the concrete roof, ultimately leading to the interior ceiling's collapse. The Mariners were forced to play the last 15 home games of the 1994 strike-shortened season on the road. Repairing the roof ultimately cost $51 million and two construction workers lost their lives in a crane accident. The incident also motivated plans to replace the stadium.

Baseball

One of the most noteworthy baseball games in Kingdome history took place on October 8, 1995 when the Seattle Mariners defeated the New York Yankees 6-5 in 11 innings in the rubber game of the American League Division Series in front of 57,411 raucous fans. ^*

Basketball

Besides the Mariners and Seahawks, the stadium also hosted the National Basketball Association's Seattle SuperSonics for a number of years, plus the 1987 NBA All-Star Game. The NCAA Final Four was held three times at the Kingdome - in 1984, when Georgetown defeated Houston, in 1989 when Michigan beat Seton Hall in overtime, and in 1995 when UCLA won their first championship since the retirement of legendary coach John Wooden, defeating Arkansas.

Other Sports and Entertainment

The Kingdome's first sporting event was a game between the North American Soccer League's New York Cosmos and Seattle Sounders on April 25, 1976, with 58,218 fans in attendance.

As the Kingdome hosted an NFL Pro Bowl in 1977, a Major League Baseball All-Star Game in 1979, and an NBA All-Star game in 1987, it was the only venue to host a major league all-star game in all three of North America's most popular team sports.

The Stadium also hosted the High School football state championships in an event called the King Bowl. Since the stadium's implosion the state championships moved to the Tacoma Dome in nearby Tacoma, WA.

Numerous rock concerts were held in the cavernous venue, including two Rolling Stones concerts on October 14 and 15, 1981, that attracted crowds of 69,132 and 68,028.

Replacement

In 1997, plans were finalized to construct two new stadiums in Seattle, Qwest Field and Safeco Field. These two planned stadiums, homes of the Seattle Seahawks and Seattle Mariners respectively, rendered the Kingdome useless and guaranteed its demise.

The stadium was demolished by implosion (sent to "Kingdome Come", as it were) on March 26, 2000 in the first live event ever covered by ESPN Classic, and set a world record for the largest implosion of a concrete building. The Kingdome was imploded before its debt was fully paid. It is also believed to be the first domed stadium in the United States to ever be demolished.

Qwest Field, the home of the National Football League Seattle Seahawks, now occupies the site. Safeco Field, the Mariners' home park, sits adjacent to Qwest Field.

Statistics, facts, and figures:

http://www.metrokc.gov/stadium/

External links

The Story behind the implosion of The Seattle Kingdome

Kingdome | キングドーム