Graduating high school is just like getting swept up by a giant wave of molasses; you have no choice but to go with the flow.
January 15, 1919 at approximately 12:30 pm, in the North End neighborhood of Boston Massachusetts (42°22′06.6″N 71°03′21.0″W / 42.368500°N 71.055833°W / 42.368500; -71.055833), the Great Molasses Flood occurred.
The temperature had recently risen above 40 degrees Fahrenheit, causing thermal expansion of the molasses inside of the 50 feet tall and 90 feet diameter tank. After a second of rumbling came the infamous burst.
The storage tank, filled with 2.3 million gallons and weighing about 12,000 metric tons, burst into the streets to create a daunting wave. Considering that molasses is 40% more dense than water, said wave gathered a lot of potential energy. The 25 feet high fluid, traveling 35 miles per hour, managed to kill 21 people and injure another 150. The fatalities included Patrick Breen (44), William Brogan (61), Bridget Clougherty (65), Stephen Clougherty (34), John Callahan (43), Maria Di Stasio (10), William Duffy (58), Peter Francis (64), Flaminio Gallerani (37), Pasquale Iantosca (10), James J. Kenneally (48), Eric Laird (17), George Layhe (38), James Lennon (64), Ralph Martin (21), James McMullen (46), Cesar Nicolo (32), Thomas Noonan (43), Peter Shaughnessy (18), John M. Seiberlich (69), Michael Sinnott (78) and several horses. Many of the deaths occurred due to drowning or being crushed by debris carried by the wave. For those that were merely injured, coughing fits became a predominant ailment later on. Multiple blocks were flooded with a depth of approximately two to three feet.
The event was so impactful that decades later, local residents insisted that the area still smelled of molasses on hot summer days.
