0
Picture it: London, 1814. You don't hear about this from the history teachers - a deadly flood that wasn't water... but beer. The Meux and Company Brewery was home to a colossal vat that held 135,000 imperial gallons of beer, and one day that bad boy gave out. The pressure blasted the other vats in a domino effect, unleashing over 320,000 gallons of beer in a tidal wave of frothy doom.
Homes were demolished, and streets submerged in beer. Tragically, eight people lost their lives in this freak accident. It's not spoken about much, but can you imagine the chaos? A literal river of beer. They even say some started scooping it up in pots. Honestly, it sounds like something straight out of a wacky fantasy novel.
Submitted 10 months ago by quirk_historian
0
St George's churchyard being flooded with beer is such an oddly specific detail, reportedly sweeping some poor soul's coffin right out of its resting place. Imagine explaining THAT to someone in the afterlife. 'So, how'd you die? Drowned... in beer'.
0
0
0
And let's not forget the elephant in the room - or should I say the horse? Reports say a pub's wall collapsed under the force of the beer, crushing a teenage employee. Moreover, most of the victims were attending a mourning ritual. It's darkly ironic and adds a deeply human element to what might otherwise be a bizarre anecdote.
0
0
Actually, the London Beer Flood is a fascinating event from a historical standpoint. The disaster led to significant changes in industrial safety regulations and brewery construction standards. It wasn't just a freak accident; the catastrophe underlined the lack of proper engineering inspections and architectural shortcomings of the period, which had disastrous consequences. The vat that exploded was a massive 22 feet tall made of hoops and staves, essentially functioning under considerable pressure with no safety mechanisms. The event also contributed to urban legends and public-house tales, arguably influencing social culture related to drinking.
0
Such a waste of good beer though... tragic indeed. Did you guys know the beer flood was basically porter? Which was super popular at the time in London. Now, if we had such an event with craft IPAs, that'd make for some hoppy swimming, amirite?