8. In an explosion measuring one-sixth that of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, the Cleveland East Ohio Gas Explosion killed over 100 people in 1944
On the afternoon of October 20, 1944, at approximately 2:30 pm, an above-ground storage tank containing liquefied natural gas at the East Ohio Gas Company’s tank farm began leaking. Draining into the sewers via street gutters, this gas mixed with the air and ignited. Manhole covers were fired into the air as the sewers erupted in flame, with one cover discovered several miles away in a neighboring town. Although initially believed to have been contained, with residents returned to their homes, at 3:00 pm a second tank detonated and leveled the entire farm. Sending a wave of fire throughout the drainage system, homeowners suddenly found their homes ablaze and forced to flee.
In total, an estimated 130 people were killed by the resultant explosions, alongside $15m of property, with an entire square mile of the east side of the city of Cleveland destroyed. 600 people were left homeless and miles of underground infrastructure eradicated. The event drew public attention to the inherent dangers of the above-ground storage of natural gas, used as fuel for homes as well as factories, and contributed to the relocation of these units below ground to prevent a recurrence.