hello everyone we all know mother nature
likes to put us in our place earthquakes
tornadoes and other assorted calamities
all serve to keep us in check and knock
our human ego down a notch sometimes
however we don't need the help some of
the worst disasters in our history can
be chalked up to human error we like to
think things are under control that the
people in charge are careful and
responsible but as the following stories
show that's not always the case
Halifax ship explosion a giant game of
chicken caused one of the largest
non-nuclear explosions in history this
big bang was the result of two ships the
Norwegian vessel SS mo and the SS Mont
Blanc colliding in the harbor of Halifax
Nova Scotia the Mont Blanc a French
cargo ship laden with explosives for use
in World War one was on its way to
Bordeaux from New York with a stop in
Halifax as it entered the lane of the
Halifax channel it met the mo which was
on its way out there was a protocol for
this type of situation with each ship
assigned to opposite sides of the narrow
waterway but that day the two captains
refused to move out of each other's way
at the last minute
the Mont Blanc turned but was hit
broadside by the Imoh the resulting
explosion caused the harbour to
momentarily empty of water with waves
washing tsunami-like onto the
surrounding shore this in combination
with the shock from the explosion
obliterated everything for 800 meters
radius structures were flattened trees
snapped and piles of debris burst into
flame all in all nearly 2,000 people
were killed and 9,000 were injured
shockwaves were felt 177 kilometers away
and to top it off rescue and recovery
efforts were hampered by a blizzard
which blanketed Halifax in 41
centimeters of snow deadly molasses
flood cause of death molasses that was
what killed 21 inhabitants of Boston's
North End after a thunderous wave of
brown goo smashed ville
and smothered terrified bystanders it
was Wednesday January 15 1919 when one
of the weirdest manmade disasters of all
time occurred it began when a giant
holding tank full of molasses began to
creak and groan when citizens reported
the problem
authorities seemed unconcerned the metal
tank had made such noises before and
everyone agreed it was just the molasses
settling besides how would anyone go
about repairing such a thing the take
was 15 meters tall and built to hold 8.7
million litres of molasses the decision
to ignore the problem was a bad one the
creaking sounds grew steadily worse
until around 12:30 p.m. when a deep
rumble was followed by the shriek of
rending metal when the tank exploded its
contents flooded the area in the
aftermath 150 people were injured and 21
were killed it was nearly impossible to
identify victims under the dried brown
glaze much less remove them from the
streets Boston Harbor was browned for
weeks as a result of the flood this kind
of molasses wasn't so sweet Johnstown
dam failure in 1879 a group called the
South Fork fishing and hunting Club
built a luxurious Lodge near Johnstown
Pennsylvania to be used by its wealthy
members for vacations hunting and
fishing trips while the club members
spent lavishly on the lodge they
neglected to update the earthen dam
which held a beautiful Lake Kannamma in
check on May 31st 1889 everyone paid the
price after two days of torrential rain
the lake rose to the top of the dam
efforts were made to siphon off some of
the water but it was too late at 3:10
p.m. there was a great roar and the dam
burst millions of tons of water pounded
down the valley at 64 km/h by the time
the water reached Johnstown it was
loaded with houses wagons animals and
trees a 50 year old survivor named Lisa
Phipps said it resembled a rolling
mountain so filthy was its water to add
misery to an already epic misfortune an
enormous wall of debris which had
stacked up against an old stone bridge
caught fire killing all who sheltered
there
the flood finally dissipated over 2,200
people had died and 10 square kilometers
of Johnstown were destroyed
London's killer smog killer smog sounds
like the plot of a horror movie
but this was the real thing for five
days in December 1952
a smothering cloud descended on London
killing thousands
December 5th was a cold day and as
Londoners woke they stoked their
fireplaces and lit their coal stoves
sending plumes of black smoke into the
air smoky diesel fueled buses carried
people to work and factories belch tons
of pollution into the air unfortunately
on this day an inversion set in trapping
pollutants on top of the city with no
wind to clear the air the smog had
nowhere to go by noon it had turned a
sickly yellowish brown and began to
smell like rotten eggs parents were
warned to keep their children home from
school for fear they might become lost
in the vaporous haze the air was so
thick that people couldn't see their
feet and river traffic was halted on the
Thames birds died when they flew into
buildings and livestock suffocated
people suffered similar fates it is
estimated that as many as 12,000 people
died of respiratory ailments related
directly to the sulfurous air finally
after five nightmarish days a fresh
breeze blew in and whisked the killer
smog out to sea it was not until 1956
that a clean air act was finally passed
Exxon Valdez oil spill Prince William
Sound and the lands around it are home
to the grizzly bear otter and countless
species of birds and aquatic life this
pristine and peaceful area also
supported a large fishing community life
here was forever changed on March 24th
1989 when an oil tanker named the Exxon
Valdez ran aground in Prince William
Sound on impact the Valdez began
spouting sticky crude oil roughly 41
million litres gushed into the water
poisoning sea creatures and destroying
the delicate ecosystem it wasn't long
before black goo also began to wash up
on the shore
covering seabirds and harbor seals local
fisherman who rushed to help were
initially refused but
the overwhelming effects of the spiel
became apparent thousands of volunteers
were recruited to help clean up beaches
and animals as the oil-soaked creatures
were collected they were carefully
cleaned and rehabilitated but tragically
thousands of seabirds and otters
hundreds of seals and bald eagles and 22
orcas did not survive despite being
drunk and turning control of the ship
over to an unqualified pilot Joseph
Hazelwood captain of the Valdez got off
relatively easy with community service
and a $50,000 fine living with the
aftermath of the spill wasn't nearly so
easy for those affected only time will
tell the extent of the damage
Bhopal chemical disaster used in the
production of pesticide methyl
isocyanate or MSE is also deadly to
humans this became all too clear during
the early morning hours of December 3rd
1984 when the world's worst industrial
accident occurred at Union Carbide
chemical plant in Bhopal India thanks to
a leaky storage tank malfunctioning
warning systems and multiple safety
violations a chemical reaction sent
clouds of poisonous gas pouring into the
surrounding neighborhoods the victims
mostly poor and living in a densely
populated area near the plant were
largely asleep at the time but even
those who tried to escape found it
impossible the suffocating cloud was
heavier than air and hovered close to
the ground carried by the wind the gas
spread faster than victims could run the
final death toll was estimated to be
between three thousand eight hundred and
sixteen thousand with over half a
million injured survivors suffered
long-term consequences such as lung
damage by irritation blindness and other
effects of exposure to the toxic gas
while some of the victims received
compensation for their pain and
suffering the amounts were paltry and
hardly sufficient to make up for a
lifetime of disability London Baird
tsunami bear has always been a popular
beverage but most people prefer it in a
glass not flooding the streets of their
town in the early 1800s many London
breweries utilized giant wooden beer
vets they started as tourist attractions
soon turned into an unofficial
competition to see who could build the
largest cask the owners of the horseshoe
brewery were proud of their vets which
held thousands of barrels of beer on
October 17 1814 one of their vets burst
causing a domino effect with the
surrounding bets the result was a 4.6
meter tall wave of beer which crashed
through new Street into the st. Giles
rookery one of London's poorest areas
two houses fell like matchsticks in the
face of the solid wall of liquid while
shocked citizens were swept away in the
torrent after the wave of beer dispersed
and rescuers arrived they were
instructed to be silent to better hear
the cries of survivors who were buried
in the rubble in the end eight people
died in a said twist five of the
casualties were mourners at the funeral
of a young boy who had died the day
before the accident was determined to be
an act of God and the Brewers got off
scot-free the victims were not
compensated for their losses in any way
terrible train collision the Dutchman's
curved train wreck occurred in Nashville
Tennessee over 100 years ago but is
still considered the worst rail
collision in US history on July 9 1918
two trains traveling at high speeds
collided the resulting impact was heard
3.2 kilometres away at around 7 a.m.
train engineer David Kennedy pulled his
number 4 train out of the station and
onto the single track that headed for
Memphis after giving the OK the tower
operator noticed that another train
coming from the opposite direction had
not yet arrived in the station realizing
his error the towered man blew the
emergency whistle to stop the number 4
it was too late each train was traveling
around 100 km/h in opposite directions
on the same track the trains met in a
furious crash cars piled on top of each
other littering the surrounding area
with debris and bodies it was a mess
said one rescue worker just a twisted
jumble of Steel and humanity when all
was said and done 101 people died and
171 were injured in an ironic twist
Kennedy the engineer of the number 4
train had
been planning his retirement before
departing that morning he told a
co-worker that this would be his last
run arsenal he'll explosion it was a
pleasant day in Salt Lake City and
crowds had gathered for the semiannual
General Conference of the Mormon Church
people played baseball in the park rode
in the lake and picnicked in bright
sunshine two young men Frank Hill and
Charles Richardson both 18 were tending
cattle on Arsenal hill near the powder
magazine which held the city's store of
ammunition in attempt to ward off
boredom Hill and Richardson began taking
potshots at a flock of geese flying
overhead
moments later 40 tons of gunpowder
blasting powder and various other types
of explosives and ammunition detonated
in three consecutive blasts both boys
were killed instantly horses bolted
trees fell and the baseball players were
knocked to the ground shards of glass
flew through the air and boulders some
as heavy as 52 kilograms fell from the
sky every building within a 3.2
kilometer radius was damaged remarkably
only four people were killed on this
terrible day in the end it was estimated
that 500 tons of rock fell on the city
the area where the powder magazine sat
was reduced to a moonscape of craters
the local papers declared this was a day
no one would forget but today the
disaster is relatively obscure chernobyl
one of the all-time worst man-made
disasters was the Chernobyl nuclear
accident in 1986
thanks to plant mismanagement and
reactor design flaws a massive explosion
released enormous amounts of
radioactivity into the air though the
Soviet government tried to keep the
disaster a secret surrounding countries
quickly noticed elevated levels of
radioactive particles and tracked it
back to the source several people died
immediately after the explosion and 237
people suffered acute radiation
poisoning
due to lack of detailed information it
is not known how many people ultimately
died from cancer and other side effects
of this accident but estimates are in
the tens of thousands though the area
surrounding Chernobyl is still unsafe
and will not be officially habitable for
at least another 20,000 years some
people have returned to their homes and
in the ultimate act of defiance of
danger the Chernobyl catastrophe area
has now become a tourist attraction if
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