The worst disasters in history, part 2: man-made disasters

Human ingenuity is powerful. Visionary. Transformative.

It builds cities, fuels progress and advances our world. And each other.

Sometimes, though, mistakes are made. Warnings are ignored. Unforeseen circumstances appear out of nowhere. Suddenly, technology that is meant to protect can fail. Systems designed for efficiency can collapse.

Ingenuity that’s meant to be helpful is now dangerous.

World Vision Canada looks at some of the worst disasters in history. This is part 2, which focuses on man-made disasters. You can also check out part 1, which looks at the worst natural disasters in history.

Worst man-made disasters in history: before 1900

Wanggongchang Explosion, China: May 30, 1626

Gunpowder was invented in China around the 9th century by accident.

Alchemists seeking an elixir of immortality accidentally mixed potassium nitrate, charcoal and sulfur. The results were explosive and world changing.

By the 17th century, gunpowder was an industry. Factories like the Wanggongchang Armory in Beijing produced and stored gunpowder for the military. For the workers, May 30 was just another day at the factory.

Until it wasn’t. Between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m., an explosion occurred. The actual cause of the explosion is lost to history. Speculation includes:

• Accidental ignition of gunpowder from sparks, heat or fire.
• Lightning struck the gunpowder, causing it to explode.
• An earthquake destabilized the gunpowder or knocked it into open flames.

Whatever the cause, the results were destructive:

• As many as 20,000 people were killed in the blast.
• The force of the explosion flattened sections of the city and was reportedly felt 150 kilometers (93 miles) away.
• The ground near the epicentre of the blast sank 6.5 metres (21 feet) after the explosion.

The imperial court of the day pressured Zhu Youjiao (the second-to-last emperor of the Ming Dynasty) to take responsibility for the blast. He publicly repented and paid 20,000 taels of gold to fund rescue and relief efforts.

Great Fire of London, England: September 2, 1666

London would experience another great fire 274 years later during the Blitz in World War II.

But nothing like this.

This great fire started in Thomas Farriner’s bakery (on Pudding Lane ––really) and ended four days later at Pye Corner. In between:

• At least 80% of London inside the old Roman walls was destroyed.
• Over 80 churches and 13,200 houses burned to the ground.
• The fire caused £10 million in damage ( over £2 billion today).

Buildings back then were made from wood and thatch. Strong winds fanned the flames, and the city lacked a modern firefighting system. Water was supplied through wooden pipes fed by water wheels––until the fire destroyed them.

Citizens formed bucket brigades, passing water from the River Thames. Buildings were pulled down (many were equipped with fire hooks for this exact reason) or blown up with gunpowder to create firebreaks and stop the spread.

Surprisingly, only six deaths were officially recorded from the fire, but the true number is believed to be higher.

Worst man-made disasters in history: 1900-1999

Sinking of RMS Titanic, North Atlantic Ocean: April 15, 1912

Perhaps the most famous shipwreck of all time is also one of the deadliest.

On April 14, Titanic was around 1,600 kilometres (1,000 miles) from New York. That night, the ship entered “iceberg alley.” It’s an area known for having hard-to-see chunks of ice floating low in the water.

Titanic received at least seven warnings from passing ships. None were acted upon in time, and at 11:40 p.m., the ship struck an iceberg. Buckled plates and opened seams created a series of holes 12 square feet ––around the size of a small rug––which sealed her fate two hours later:

• Approximately 1,500 people died out of 2,200 for a 32 per cent survival rate.
• The ship split in two and both pieces took roughly 5-10 minutes to reach the ocean floor 4,000 metres (13,000 feet) below.

As soon as she sank, microbes began devouring her hull. That, combined with the pressure of resting 3.9 kilometers (2.4 miles) underwater, means Titanic could lose its structure and collapse into a rusty mound by the 2030s.

Halifax Explosion, Canada: December 6, 1917

World War I was raging. Extraordinary measures were needed.

Before the war, ships carrying dangerous goods were not permitted in the harbor. That rule was relaxed to support the war effort, so the SS Mont-Blanc was in port, carrying highly volatile explosives headed for Bordeaux.

Meanwhile, the SS Imo was empty and destined for New York to load relief supplies.

Mont-Blanc was moving at one knot (1.9 kilometres per hour or 1.2 miles per hour) when she collided with Imo. A fire broke out on Mont-Blanc and, at 9:04 a.m. local time, her cargo detonated.

It produced the largest explosion in history up to that point. The devastation was immediate and widespread:

• Approximately 2,000 people were killed.
• Around 9,000 were injured from the blast or from flying glass and debris.
• 1,630 homes were destroyed, leaving over 6,000 people homeless.

It was so powerful, it caused a tidal wave in the harbor. The explosion is still the largest non-nuclear blast in history.

In 1917, to show its appreciation to the city of Boston for its support in the aftermath of the disaster, the city of Halifax sent it a Christmas tree.

That tradition continues today.

Bhopal Gas Tragedy, India: December 3, 1984

Bhopal was home to the Union Carbide India Limited pesticide plant, a major local employer.

On the night of December 3, water entered storage tank E610, which held methyl isocyanate (MIC). When water mixes with MIC, it heats and boils. MIC gas escaped via vent pipes and into the community.

MIC is heavier than air. Instead of dissipating, it hugged the ground and seeped into homes. Within the first few hours, an estimated 35 tons (maybe more) of toxic gas escaped. After that:

• Over 500,000 people were exposed to MIC.
• At least 3,700 people died and over time, an 20,000 people may have died from exposure.
• Trees and 2,000 buffalo, goats and other animals died.

The Bhopal Gas Tragedy is accepted as the worst industrial disaster in history. The plant is closed, but leftover chemicals continue to pollute the soil and water today.

• Responding and restoring: World Vision responded to the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, providing immediate aid to victims and assisting with rehabilitating the community.

Chernobyl Disaster, Ukraine: April 26, 1986

A routine test ––to simulate reactor performance during an accident––suddenly became all too real and all too deadly.

To perform the test, operators disabled several safety systems. An uncontrolled power surge overheated the fuel rods inside the reactor to 2,000 degrees Celsius (3,600 degrees Fahrenheit), causing a meltdown.

It got worse:

• One explosion caused a reactor vessel to rupture.
• A second explosion blew the roof off the reactor building.

With no roof, massive amounts of radioactive material spewed into the sky and drifted across Europe. At least 40 per cent of the continent was exposed to contamination with trace particles detected as far away as North America. Ukraine, Belarus and Russia bore most of the impact:

• Four thousand eventual deaths are projected from radiation exposure.
• Over 335,000 people were evacuated from their homes.
• The city of Pripyat (population just under 50,000) where the power plant was located was totally abandoned.

At $700 billion, Chernobyl is the most expensive disaster in history. The costs are still being paid, even today. It’s estimated that around 6 per cent of Ukraine’s government spending is still related to the disaster.

Meanwhile, the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone––the most heavily impacted area––won’t return to normal radiation levels for 200-300 years.

Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, United States: March 24, 1989

At the top of the world––where there might be more polar bears than people––lies Prince William Sound.

It’s in Alaska. It’s picturesque, remote and home to the port town of Valdez. It’s also the shipping terminus of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline. Oil extracted from Prudhoe Bay travels the pipeline to Prince William Sound, where it’s loaded onto tankers like the Exxon Valdez.

Just after midnight, the Exxon Valdez––on its way to Long Beach, California–– struck a reef in low-lying waters, running aground and spilling nearly 42 million litres (11 million gallons) into Prince William Sound. It got worse:

• Over 250,000 seabirds, 2,800 sea otters, 300 seals and up to 22 killer whales died in the spill.
• Around 2,100 kilometres (1,300 miles) of shoreline ––the distance between Toronto and New Orleans––was covered in oil.
• Cleanup and oil recovery costs exceeded $3.5 billion.

Over the next four years, 10,000 people, 1,000 boats and over 100 aircraft participated in the response.

Despite the scale of the clean-up effort, only 8 per cent of the spilled oil was ever recovered.

Worst man-made disasters in history: 2000-2025

Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Gulf of Mexico: April 20, 2010

Offshore oil rigs are among the most dangerous workplaces on Earth.

They operate in deep water, drill depths humans can’t reach and face the full force of Mother Nature.

While drilling an undersea well, methane gas surged up the drill pipe and exploded on Deepwater Horizon. The rig was equipped with blowout preventers (BOPs)––massive valves designed to seal a well if something goes wrong.

They failed. And for 87 straight days, oil poured into the Gulf of Mexico with catastrophic consequences:

• Over 770 million litres (206 million gallons) of oil spilled into the water.
• Around 2,100 kilometers (1,300 miles) of beach, marsh and island shorelines were contaminated.
• Up to 800,000 birds, 7,600 large sea turtles and trillions of larval fish died from the disaster.

Stopping the spill required complex engineering. Engineers first installed a temporary cap. Then a relief well was drilled to intersect with the damaged well. It was pumped with heavy mud and cement to seal it permanently and declare it “effectively dead.”

Sadly, 11 workers were also killed. Two days after the accident, on April 22, Deepwater Horizon sank 1,500 meters (5,000 feet) to the ocean floor.

Rana Plaza Collapse, Bangladesh: April 24, 2013

On April 23, workers noticed cracks forming in the eight-story Rana Plaza building.

The lower floors housed shops and a bank, which were immediately closed. The upper floors contained several garment factories. Those employees were ordered back to work the next day to sew garments for consumers on the other side of the world.

On April 24, more cracks appeared. The building rumbled. At 8:45 a.m. local time, the building collapsed. It became one of the deadliest structural failures in human history, resulting in:

• The deaths of at least 1,134 people.
• More than 2,500 people were injured, many with life-long injuries.
• A 19-day search and rescue operation.

This disaster exposed two unsightly truths. First was the lack of any building permits. The building was constructed over a former pond, and additional floors were added without proper support.

Second was the extreme cost and time pressure put on factories to produce garments as quickly––and cheaply––as possible. And the unsafe conditions workers face to sew cheap clothing for wealthier markets.

• One year later: Deborah Wolfe, a World Vision Canada employee, visited the site of the disaster and shared her thoughts on what happened and what should change.

Beirut Explosion, Lebanon: August 4, 2020

In 2020, the world was quiet due to COVID-19. That silence was instantly shattered in the city of Beirut.

Around 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate sat improperly stored for six years at the Port of Beirut. Ammonium nitrate is commonly used in fertilizer. When exposed to fire, it becomes dangerous and is prone to exploding.

At 5:45 p.m. local time, a fire broke out in Warehouse 12. Warehouse 12 stored ammonium nitrate and a stash of confiscated fireworks. The fire reached and ignited the ammonium nitrate around 6:07 p.m., resulting in one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history.

The blast devastated the city:

• Over 200 people were killed from the explosion.
• More than 7,000 people were injured.
• At least 300,000 people were displaced from their homes.

The blast also triggered an earthquake measuring 3.3-magnitude and released energy comparable to 1.1 kilotons of TNT.

Effects from the explosion were felt in Syria, Israel and Cyprus, which is 240 kilometres (150 miles) away.

• Supporting the most vulnerable: World Vision provided temporary shelter, food, hygiene and mental health support to the families and children who were left homeless from the explosion.

World Vision Canada: first in, last out

When the world’s worst man-made disasters occur, World Vision Canada is there.

Our “first in, last out” motto enables us to provide emergency response in the immediate aftermath. Getting there isn’t enough. We stay after the emergency has passed to ensure impacted communities are rebuilt.

• The first 72: Discover how World Vision teams reach disaster zones quickly and why the first 72 hours are essential to help children and families survive the impact of man-made disasters.

Lives can change in an instant. Our global relief network features seven strategically located warehouses globally. Stocked and primed to deliver emergency supplies to 225,000 people.

Help us be ready

Man-made disasters can be unpredictable. When they occur, World Vision Canada is ready to respond, recover, and rebuild.

Here’s how you can help:

• Donate emergency food: Keep hunger at bay with urgent food delivery. When you donate emergency food, your gift multiplies 7x in value thanks to contributions from the World Food Programme.
• Cash and vouchers: Let families choose the supplies they need while supporting local markets. Your gift will multiply 7x in value thanks to contributions from the World Food Programme.
• Water purification and hygiene kits: Provide clean water when and where it’s needed most along with soap, toothpaste and more. Your gift will multiply 6x in value thanks to contributions from our World Vision Canada partners.