Other major blasts

How does the Beirut explosion compare to some other major blasts throughout world history, in terms of the size of blast and human toll? The National Post’s Jonathan Bradley compares:

Halifax Harbour Explosion ( 1917)

Kilotons: 2.9 kilotons Death toll: 1,963 people Injuries: 9,000 people The Mont Blanc, a French vessel loaded with 2.9 kilotons of explosives, collided with the Belgian relief ship, Imo, in Halifax harbour on Dec. 6, 1917. A fire broke out on the Mont Blanc, which firefighters tried to extinguish. The flames reached the Mont Blanc’s cargo, and an explosion that had a 2.9-kiloton blast was created.

The official death toll from the Halifax explosion was 1,963 people. Nine thousand people were injured, 6,000 people were left homeless.

Bombing of Hiroshima ( 1945)

Kilotons: 12 to 15 kilotons Death toll: 80,000 people Injuries: Tens of thousands An American B-29 bomber during the Second World War dropped the world’s first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, on Aug. 6, 1945. The bombing killed 80,000 people, but tens of thousands were sickened with radiation exposure, and would later die from it.

Chernobyl accident ( 1986)

Kilotons: 0.3 kilotons

Death toll: 30 people Injuries: 6,500 injuries The Chernobyl accident on April 26, 1986, happened because of a flawed nuclear reactor design that was operated with inadequately trained staff. The steam explosion and fires coming from the reactor created a 0.3 kiloton blast.

Thirty people were killed in the Chernobyl accident, but a further 6,500 people developed thyroid cancer from the radiation that was released.

Oklahoma City bombing ( 1995)

Kilotons: 0.0025 kilotons Death toll: 168 people Injuries: Several hundred Timothy Mcveigh, a former army soldier and security guard, detonated a bomb made out of agriculture fertilizer, diesel fuel and other chemicals inside a vehicle next to the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995.

The death toll from the Oklahoma City Bombing was 168 people. Several hundred people were injured. It was the worst act of homegrown terrorism in U. S.history.

Lac- Mégantic rail disaster

( 2013)

Kilotons: 0.0001 kilotons Death toll: 47 people Injuries: Hundreds A runaway train hauling 72 tankers filled with crude oil derailed as it approached the centre of Lac- Mégantic, Que., on July 6, 2013.

Almost six million litres of crude oil leaked from the tankers that derailed and exploded, creating a blast equal to 0.0001 kilotons that killed 47 people and destroyed many buildings and other infrastructure in the town’s centre.

Years after the derailment, rebuilding is ongoing in Lac-mégantic.