DID YOU KNOW…
The Great London Beer Flood: A Deadly Tsunami of Porter
In 1814, a massive vat holding over 135,000 gallons of porter beer burst in London, unleashing a deadly tsunami of alcohol that killed at least eight people and destroyed two homes.
The disaster occurred at the Meux & Co brewery on Tottenham Court Road when one of the massive wooden vats, nearly 22 feet tall, catastrophically failed. The force of the initial rupture triggered a chain reaction, causing other vats to burst and sending a 15-foot high wave of beer surging through the impoverished St. Giles rookery. Many victims drowned, some were crushed, and the scene was described as a tragic mixture of panic, destruction, and the intoxicating smell of porter. The brewery was later found not liable for the incident, ruling it an 'Act of God.'
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