Essay On Halifax Explosion
The Halifax Explosion was a defining moment in Canadian history, due to the immense amounts of tragedy that it created. On 6 December 1917, two vessel collided in the Halifax Harbour destroying many parts of the city, killing nearly 2,000 people and injuring more than 9,000. In the text I will notify you of the collision. Following this will be information on the disaster that the collision induced. Lastly, I will speak of what was done to prevent the explosion from being even more fatal, for many more beings.
The two ships that collided were the Imo (a Norwegian vessel) and the Mont-Blanc (a French based vessel). Imo was leaving the harbour while the Mont-Blanc was entering the harbour. The Mont-Blanc was carrying 2,653 tonnes of, ammo and other explosives such as dynamite. The Imo was travelling way too fast and on the opposite side that it should have been travelling. The Imo’s captain was trying to avoid a tugboat and he did not see the fast approaching Mont-Blanc. Both ships blew their whistles, warning each other to move, but neither ship budged until the last second. The Imo crashed into with the Mont Blanc causing a massive fire. Knowing that they had …show more content…
explosions on board, the French crew of the Mont-Blanc abandoned ship. When they arrived on shore, the sailors tried to warn everyone of the explosion that would soon occur, but they had great difficulty speaking English. The burning Mont Blanc floated deep into the harbour, hit Pier 6 in the Halifax Harbour and became stuck. Halifax firefighters arrived and tried to lower the flames, while many more people stood around watching. Thirty-five minutes later, the ship exploded and caused the biggest artificial explosion ever (prior to the invention of the atomic bomb).
The explosion destroyed the adjacent harbour facilities and killed most people in the city’s area.
This area was soon engulfed in a fire that spread quickly to other buildings and establishments, practically wiping out the historic Halifax Harbour. The aftershock from the blast caused a tidal wave, which demolished more buildings, uprooted several trees and tossed other ships around like toys. Buildings almost two kilometres away from the crash site were damaged.On that tragic day many adults were killed on their way to work and children were killed on their walk to school that morning. However, across Halifax there were also many miraculous stories of survival.Those that did survive the blast stumbled home, only to find their houses destroyed, or their parents killed or wounded among the
wreckage.
The two ships that collided were the Imo (a Norwegian vessel) and the Mont-Blanc (a French based vessel). Imo was leaving the harbour while the Mont-Blanc was entering the harbour. The Mont-Blanc was carrying 2,653 tonnes of, ammo and other explosives such as dynamite. The Imo was travelling way too fast and on the opposite side that it should have been travelling. The Imo’s captain was trying to avoid a tugboat and he did not see the fast approaching Mont-Blanc. Both ships blew their whistles, warning each other to move, but neither ship budged until the last second. The Imo crashed into with the Mont Blanc causing a massive fire. Knowing that they had …show more content…
explosions on board, the French crew of the Mont-Blanc abandoned ship. When they arrived on shore, the sailors tried to warn everyone of the explosion that would soon occur, but they had great difficulty speaking English. The burning Mont Blanc floated deep into the harbour, hit Pier 6 in the Halifax Harbour and became stuck. Halifax firefighters arrived and tried to lower the flames, while many more people stood around watching. Thirty-five minutes later, the ship exploded and caused the biggest artificial explosion ever (prior to the invention of the atomic bomb).
The explosion destroyed the adjacent harbour facilities and killed most people in the city’s area.
This area was soon engulfed in a fire that spread quickly to other buildings and establishments, practically wiping out the historic Halifax Harbour. The aftershock from the blast caused a tidal wave, which demolished more buildings, uprooted several trees and tossed other ships around like toys. Buildings almost two kilometres away from the crash site were damaged.On that tragic day many adults were killed on their way to work and children were killed on their walk to school that morning. However, across Halifax there were also many miraculous stories of survival.Those that did survive the blast stumbled home, only to find their houses destroyed, or their parents killed or wounded among the
wreckage.