January 13 - 19: 21 people are killed and 150 injured as a wave of molasses tears through a neighbourhood. - An English haberdasher is fined for breaching the peace and disturbing the balance of society... due to his hat. - A farmer finds a 'UFO nest' in Queensland, Australia.
Three unrelated stories of a strange, unusual or dark nature.
Three unrelated stories of a strange, unusual or dark nature.
January 15, 1919
Aftermath of the molasses flood. Just before lunch, workers at the Purity Distilling Company (a subsidiary of the United States Industrial Alcohol Company), in the North End neighbourhood, Boston, Massachusetts, were loading rail cars when a loud rumbling started in the large tank of molasses they were loading next too. Next, rapid loud pops were heard as rivets burst from the bottom seam of the tank, as the molasses contained inside burst from its holdings. This was not a small tank by any means – 15 meters tall and 27 meters in diameter that held 9.5 million litres.
A wave of molasses nearly 8 meters high, travelling at 60km/h, blew out the walls of the distilling company building and out into the streets. Several nearby buildings were completely destroyed, swept off their foundations to tumble along the avenue.
Several people were lifted off their feet before the wave got to them, a gush of wind preceded it with enough force to hurl people along before it.
The wave left a large area covered in stickiness and in some places the molasses was waist deep. Horses that had been knocked off their feet were unable to stand back up and drowned. Nearby basements and cellars were filled as the wave passed and several people drowned inside, underground... including several workers in the distilleries basement.
Rescue efforts were hampered by the fact that just about everything now looked the same, all covered in thick molasses. It was incredibly hard to discern a hurt person from a mundane object. It was only by the movements of those struggling in the goop that people were found. The eventual toll was 21 people dead (along with several horses) and 150 people injured.
After an investigation was carried out there was a class-action lawsuit held against the United States Industrial Alcohol Company, and survivors of deceased victims were awarded about $7,000 per victim.
The cause was found to be both structural and environmental. Many safety tests were not carried out during the molasses tanks construction, including things as simple as making sure it did not leak – in fact this tank leaked so much that the company painted it brown to hid the leakages!
The steel in the tanks construction was not the required thickness either.
Add to that the sudden rise in temperature on that day causing fermentation to go up and the increase in carbon dioxide gases and essentially it was one very large bomb primed to go off - and this could have been easily avoided.
A wave of molasses nearly 8 meters high, travelling at 60km/h, blew out the walls of the distilling company building and out into the streets. Several nearby buildings were completely destroyed, swept off their foundations to tumble along the avenue.
Several people were lifted off their feet before the wave got to them, a gush of wind preceded it with enough force to hurl people along before it.
The wave left a large area covered in stickiness and in some places the molasses was waist deep. Horses that had been knocked off their feet were unable to stand back up and drowned. Nearby basements and cellars were filled as the wave passed and several people drowned inside, underground... including several workers in the distilleries basement.
Rescue efforts were hampered by the fact that just about everything now looked the same, all covered in thick molasses. It was incredibly hard to discern a hurt person from a mundane object. It was only by the movements of those struggling in the goop that people were found. The eventual toll was 21 people dead (along with several horses) and 150 people injured.
After an investigation was carried out there was a class-action lawsuit held against the United States Industrial Alcohol Company, and survivors of deceased victims were awarded about $7,000 per victim.
The cause was found to be both structural and environmental. Many safety tests were not carried out during the molasses tanks construction, including things as simple as making sure it did not leak – in fact this tank leaked so much that the company painted it brown to hid the leakages!
The steel in the tanks construction was not the required thickness either.
Add to that the sudden rise in temperature on that day causing fermentation to go up and the increase in carbon dioxide gases and essentially it was one very large bomb primed to go off - and this could have been easily avoided.
January 15, 1797
Top Hats. Haberdasher James Hetherington leaves his store wearing a new hat and causes quite a stir. Walking along the Strand, London, people quickly notice the odd looking hat perched on top of his head. The crowd grew and soon there were gasps as people started to be crushed against one another. It got so bad that apparently several women fainted and a young boy had his arm broken when he was pushed to the ground.
Such a disturbance was not going to go unnoticed and soon Hetherington was arraigned before the Lord Mayor. Hetherington was charged with breaching the peace and inciting a riot as he had "appeared on the public highway wearing upon his head what he called a silk hat (which was shiny lustre and calculated to frighten timid people)".
Hetherington was fined £50, however, the Top Hat had gathered fans and soon he was making a lot of money filling orders for the new fashion.
(Note, although Hetherington is at times credited with inventing the top hat, he did not, its just in this instance he really helped the trend kick off in England.)
Such a disturbance was not going to go unnoticed and soon Hetherington was arraigned before the Lord Mayor. Hetherington was charged with breaching the peace and inciting a riot as he had "appeared on the public highway wearing upon his head what he called a silk hat (which was shiny lustre and calculated to frighten timid people)".
Hetherington was fined £50, however, the Top Hat had gathered fans and soon he was making a lot of money filling orders for the new fashion.
(Note, although Hetherington is at times credited with inventing the top hat, he did not, its just in this instance he really helped the trend kick off in England.)
January 19, 1966
UFO 'nest'. At about 9am, farmer George Pedley, hears a loud hissing sound coming from a patch of marshland near Horseshoe Lagoon, Queensland, Australia. This hissing sound could be heard over the tractor he was driving. Pedley then saw a round object like 'two saucers, face to face' and gray in colour, rise out of the marsh. The object then briefly hovered above the trees before taking off into the distance and disappearing. The sighting lasted about 15 seconds.
At the site where the UFO took off from, a round area had been cleared in the reeds. In this 'nest' the water was seen to slowly rotate as if it had been recently disturbed. This circular area was about 9 meters in diameter, a little larger than the size George Pedley recalled the UFO to be.
The RAAF, royal Australian Air Force, concluded that the object was a type of whirlwind that flattened the reeds. This whirlwind also sucked up some of the reeds and it was these reeds, travelling at high speed within the whirlwinds cone that gave the appearance of the saucer shaped flying object...
Not everyone agrees with this explanation.
At the site where the UFO took off from, a round area had been cleared in the reeds. In this 'nest' the water was seen to slowly rotate as if it had been recently disturbed. This circular area was about 9 meters in diameter, a little larger than the size George Pedley recalled the UFO to be.
The RAAF, royal Australian Air Force, concluded that the object was a type of whirlwind that flattened the reeds. This whirlwind also sucked up some of the reeds and it was these reeds, travelling at high speed within the whirlwinds cone that gave the appearance of the saucer shaped flying object...
Not everyone agrees with this explanation.
Ashley Hall 2015
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