Thursday, January 17, 2008

THE GREAT BOSTON MOLASSES DISASTER

Too Many Chefs -
Today is the 89th anniversary of what might be the strangest food-related disaster in U.S. history.

It was a mild winter afternoon when the 2.5 million gallon molasses tank at the Purity Distilling Factory burst. A wave of sticky brown molasses rolled down Commercial Street, covering the North End of Boston in a sweet, thick muck.

In the end, 150 people were injured, and 21 people and many horses were killed by the goop. Boston's North End retained the molasses smell for years afterwards.

I should mention that I will spend the day working in an office in South Baltimore, sandwiched between the Domino Sugar factory and a farm of - yes, it's true - giant molasses storage tanks.

Just in case, I usually park uphill from the tanks.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Thanks for visiting.

Please be considerate... no off-topic, racist, sexist or homophobic comments.

Comment moderation is on.

No anonymous comments will be accepted..