[KTrain]

For Canadian history buffs, today is the 95th anniversary of the Halifax Explosion. For those unfamiliar with this event, here's a recap from Wikipedia:

The Halifax Explosion occurred on December 6, 1917, when the city of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, was devastated by the detonation of the SS Mont-Blanc, a French cargo ship that was fully loaded with wartime explosives. The Mont-Blanc detonated after colliding with the Norwegian SS Imo in a part of Halifax Harbour called "The Narrows". About 2,000 people were killed by debris, fires, and collapsed buildings, and it is estimated that around 9,000 were injured.[2] Until the Trinity test explosions of atomic bombs, it was the largest man-made explosion in recorded history.

At 8:40 in the morning, the SS Mont-Blanc, chartered by the French government to carry munitions to Europe, collided with the unloaded Norwegian ship Imo, chartered by the Commission for Relief in Belgium to carry relief supplies. Mont-Blanc caught fire ten minutes after the collision and exploded about twenty-five minutes later (at 9:04:35 AM).[4] All buildings and structures covering nearly 2 square kilometres (500 acres) along the adjacent shore were obliterated, including those in the neighbouring communities of Richmond and Dartmouth.[2] The explosion caused a tsunami in the harbour and a pressure wave of air that snapped trees, bent iron rails, demolished buildings, grounded vessels, and carried fragments of the Mont-Blanc for kilometres.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halifax_Explosion







Large panorama shot:

Spoiler!