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The syrup you poured on your waffles this morning may seem as
harmless as sugar dust.
But in 1919, the viscous sweetener known as molasses was the culprit of one of
the weirdest industrial accidents to ever occur: the Great Boston Molasses
Flood.
Mmmm… waffles. - (Credit:
Rinnanworld.typepad.com)
The Incident
On January 13, 1919, a huge tank located on the north end of
Boston, Massachusetts was filled with a shipment of molasses. The product was
to be transported to plants where it would be fermented into industrial alcohol
used in making munitions. The tank was 50 feet tall and 90 feet in diameter
with a capacity of 2.3 million gallons. Two days after being filled, the tank
ruptured, spilling its contents out into the city in all directions.
(< -- The aftermath of the spill… - Credit: NFPA)
The expression "slow as molasses in January" certainly did
not hold true on this day. The waves of molasses were said to have reached 40
feet high and moved at speeds of 35 mph, generating 2 tons per square foot of
force. Many nearby to the tank were drowned or crushed by the molasses or the
buildings it folded over like paper. Rescuers on the scene after the initial
rupture had to tramp through the knee-high goo during their efforts. All in
all, 21 people were killed and over 150 were injured from the accident.
The Cause
The United States Industrial Alcohol Company (USIA), those
responsible for the tank, claimed during the class-action lawsuit that the
rupture was the result of a dynamite explosion caused by saboteurs. Their
claims were backed by a few "expert" eye-witness reports which they paid over
$50,000 to bring to the case.
But ultimately it was the decision of the court that the
USIA was at fault, ruling that the tank was poorly reinforced and overfilled.
The initial rupture occurred from a manhole cover at the tank's base. The
pressure from intermittent filling (the tank had been filled to capacity only
eight times before the accident) likely caused a small crack to fatigue to the
point of failure. Carbon dioxide production from fermentation and the
significant air temperature increase (41°F from 2°F the day before) likely added
to the pressure from overfilling which caused the blowout.
This wreckage is the leftovers of the storage tank - (Credit: Duck Duck Gray Duck)
Lessons Learned?
The vat was apparently built without building plan approval
or government inspection, as the vat was considered to be an industrial device
and not a building. The vessel's construction was overseen by a nontechnical
professional named Arthur Jell, who apparently did not authorize the basic
safety tests to check integrity and leakage. To hide the obvious leaks, the
tank was painted brown. Some sources say the leaks were so bad that local
residents harvested the sweetener for their own home use.
This disaster is a peculiar yet memorable one which reminds
us why we have inspections, testing, and factors of safety as part of the
design process. If the structure inspections and tests had been carried out
properly, the storage vessel would likely never have been constructed or been
put in use the way it was.
Furthermore, built-in factors of safety should have
accounted for the pressure demands of full capacity storage and increases due
to other variables (e.g. temperature change).
(A placard near the site of the accident memorializes the
event - Credit: Atlas Obscura -->)
Finally, it's important to never underestimate the power of
an industrial-sized accident, whether it involves sulfuric acid or molasses.
Sources:
Wikipedia - Boston
Molasses Disaster
GenDisasters.com
- Boston, MA 'Molasses Flood' Tank Explosion, Jan 1919
Massachusetts
Historical Society - What Caused the Boston Molasses Flood?
Yankee Magazine - The
Molasses Disaster
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Re: Death by Molasses
