The Great Halifax Explosion: A World War I Story of Treachery, Tragedy, and Extraordinary Heroism [B0185]

2018 PB with some cover wear. NATIONAL BESTSELLER. The riveting, tick-tock account of the largest manmade explosion in history prior to the atomic bomb, and the equally astonishing tales of survival and heroism that emerged from the ashes, from acclaimed New York Times bestselling author John U. Bacon. After steaming out of New York City on December 1, 1917, laden with a staggering three thousand tons of TNT and other explosives, the munitions ship Mont-Blanc fought its way up the Atlantic coast, through waters prowled by enemy U-boats. As it approached the lively port city of Halifax, Mont-Blanc's deadly cargo erupted with the force of 2.9 kilotons of TNT-the most powerful explosion ever visited on a human population, save for HIroshima and Nagasaki. Mont-Blanc was vaporized in one fifteenth of a second; a shockwave leveled the surrounding city. Next came a thirty-five-foot tsunami. Most astounding of all, however, were the incredible tales of survival and heroism that soon emerged from the rubble.

From recent Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "This book doesn't end with disaster. Instead, after 9:04AM on December 6, 1917- even before the shrapnel and debris had stopped falling- it details the many ways neighbors, strangers, and even people from a completely different country came together to help one another survive. Especially at a time when US Canadian relations are frayed, this is a sobering reminder of how much we share in common and how we've helped one another in the past."; "Well written and well balanced between setting the stage, engaging the reader with backstories and the personal lives of people impacted, the actual event, disaster recovery and the lives of people after the fact. This book was well worth completing."