Bradford's city centre Age Concern shop remained closed today as the rest of the city got back to normal after Provincial House was dramatically blown up.

Age Concern officials said today about £4,000 worth of stock at the shop in Sunbridge Road had been ruined in the dense clouds of dust that arose when the nearby landmark collapsed in a series of controlled explosions.

Age Concern Bradford and District takes about £1,000 a week in the shop which deals mainly in second hand clothes.

But Carol Wooler, the charity's chief officer, had high praise for the help given by Cleckheaton-based Controlled Demolition which destroyed the eight storey office building.

She said she had watched the demolition on Sunday morning along with hundreds of other people. "It was incredibly dramatic but a chunk of concrete landed at the back of the charity shop. The demolition of Provin-cial House was amazing but my jaw dropped when I saw the charity shop."

Jill Griffiths, the charity's service and standards development officer, said: "It has taken some of the wall out as well as the window. But the company is working very fast to put things right. They are being very good indeed."

A spokesman for Controlled Demolition said a structural engineer had checked the shop immediately and there was no structural damage.

Crowds of people were still sight-seeing yesterday after the giant office was blown down.

But the message today from the company which destroys skyscrapers all over the world is that there will be more to watch before the remains of the building, pictured, finally settle in the basement of the former 1960s building society. Mick Williams, the top explosives expert with Controlled Demolition, who master-minded the operation, said the huge lumps of concrete would reduced to pieces a fraction of the size of bricks over the next ten weeks.

During the next fortnight 4,000 tonnes of rubble will be removed in trucks to another depot where it will be crushed.

Its removal will leave space for a 60 tonne oblong crushing machine to grind the rest of the rubble to pieces. The equipment will include noise reduction techniques.

When the rubble initially removed from the site is returned, everything will be pressed into the basement to form the base of a smaller, multi-million pound building which will house caf bars, restaurant and public arts facilities.

Mr Williams said: "It was a difficult job but it went very well."

He said he was disappointed about the superficial damage which had been caused but Provincial House was in the heart of the city centre very close to other properties.

Contractors employed by developers St James Securities on behalf of Asda St James will be on site in January to build the new bar-restaurant complex which is expected to be finished in November 2003.