Posted on 10/19/2014 4:14:23 PM PDT by Slings and Arrows
200 years ago today, one of history's most bizarre disasters befell London when a 15-foot wave of beer flooded an entire neighborhood and left eight people dead.
The Horse Shoe Brewery on Tottenham Court Road in London boasted a massive 22-foot-tall vat that held some 160,000 gallons of dark porter. On October 17, 1814, one of the metal hoops meant to secure it snapped, and the wooden vat succumbed to the immense pressure of all that fermenting brew. The gushing beer smashed open the brewery's other vats, resulting in a raging sea of beer that burst forth from the building.
Over one million liters of beer flooded out onto the road and raced through the St. Giles neighborhood. The area was crammed with crowded slums, and many inhabitants couldn't escape in time. According to The Independent, "Hannah Banfield, a little girl, was taking tea with her mother, Mary, at their house in New Street when the deluge hit. Both were swept away in the current, and perished." Others who were gathered in a cellar for a wake were caught by surprise by the flood and drowned in beer. A wall of a nearby pub crumbled and crushed a 14-year-old girl who was standing next to it. In total, eight people perished in the accident.
Unsubstantiated rumors persist that rowdy locals brought pots and pans to the river of beer in an attempt to round up free drinks. In reality though, the citizens of St. Giles were lauded in the press for their help with the rescue efforts, keeping quiet in the aftermath in order to help listen for the screams of their trapped neighbors.
I’ll leave that one to someone else.
“Others who were gathered in a cellar for a wake were caught by surprise by the flood and drowned in beer. “
There’s a joke about the Irish in there somewhere.
I’m not sure how one judges the strangeness of these things. I don’t think that either one is on anyone’s list of ways that they expect to check out.
And redundant.
“Faith and begorra! We’re ALL going to heaven!”
That’s exactly how it happened.
The victims got out to pee three times.
But Boston lucked out on that one.
The anniversary is Jan 15.
Jan 15, 1919....
Conspiracy theory in 3…2…
You mean a wall of beer going down a street, drowning people, and destroying property is not strange? Mere technicalities I guess. s/
I should like a great lake of beer for the King of Kings.
I should like the angels of Heaven to be drinking it through time eternal.
I should like excellent meats of belief and pure piety.
I should like the men of Heaven at my house.
I should like barrels of peace at their disposal.
I should like for them cellars of mercy.
I should like cheerfulness to be their drinking.
I should like Jesus to be there among them.
I should like the three Marys of illustrious renown to be with us.
I should like the people of Heaven, the poor, to be gathered around from all parts.
—St. Brigid of Kildare
Well, that molasses was being stockpiled to make ethanol for munitions.
So, rum was out.
And somehow Kennedys don’t factor in!
The Boston molasses flood?
Yup.
January.
In 2019 it’ll be the centenary.
It’s weird, but is it weirder than a wall of molasses doing the same?
That's what THEY want you to think!
Lol
Maybe old Joe engineered it so that his bootlegging could takeoff!
See? The pieces are starting to come together...
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