# World's most shocking industrial accidents. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 4, 2008, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000 "2008-09-04T15:44:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/1 "2008-09-04T15:44:53Z")
Can anyone beat the Byford Dolphin diving bell [incident](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byford_Dolphin#Diving_bell_accident)? :eek: :eek: ---
**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/2 "2008-09-04T16:01:35Z")
Sure, if [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhopal\_disaster](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhopal_disaster) and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl\_disaster](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster) count. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/3 "2008-09-04T16:13:44Z")
See [SL-1 - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SL-1#The_accident) There are reports it wasn’t an accident, but suicide. ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/4 "2008-09-04T16:25:57Z")
About the incident described in the OP, I found this a little odd: > [@](#): > > Diver D4 was shot out through the small jammed hatch door opening, and was ripped apart. Subsequent investigation by forensic pathologists determined that diver D4, being exposed to the highest pressure gradient, violently exploded due to the rapid and massive expansion of internal gases. All of his thoracic and abdominal organs, and even his thoracic spine were ejected, as were all of his limbs. Simultaneously, his remains were expelled with force through the narrow trunk opening left by the jammed chamber door, less than 60 centimeters (24 inches) in diameter. Fragments of his body were found scattered about the rig. One part was even found lying on the rig’s derrick, 10 meters (30 feet) directly above the chambers. But compare this with widespread debunking of the urban legend that astronauts exposed to space would explode or blow up like balloons. Would decompression in the above mentioned case be even more violent than being exposed to space? ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/5 "2008-09-04T16:33:00Z")
> [@Koxinga](#): > > But compare this with widespread debunking of the urban legend that astronauts exposed to space would explode or blow up like balloons. Would decompression in the above mentioned case be even more violent than being exposed to space? I don’t see why not. They were going from 9 atmospheres to 1 atmosphere, rather than 1 atmosphere to 0 atmospheres. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/6 "2008-09-04T16:35:43Z")
> [@Koxinga](#): > > Would decompression in the above mentioned case be even more violent than being exposed to space? :mad: ---
**Author:** ![ChiefScott](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58f4c7/32.png) [@ChiefScott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChiefScott)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/7 "2008-09-04T16:40:53Z")
Didja ever read Upton Sinclair’s _The Jungle_? ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/8 "2008-09-04T16:41:51Z")
Does anyone else find the title of the OP reminiscent of a show on Fox? ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/9 "2008-09-04T17:03:36Z")
Speaking of things of Fox 🙂 > [@](#): > > Leela: Depth at 45 hundred feet, 48 hundred, 50 hundred! 5000 feet! > > Professor: Dear Lord, that’s over 150 atmospheres of pressure. > > Fry: How many atmospheres can this ship withstand? > > Professor: Well it’s a spaceship, so I’d say anywhere between zero and one. ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/10 "2008-09-04T17:52:58Z")
> [@Koxinga](#): > > Does anyone else find the title of the OP reminiscent of a show on Fox? Kind of my intent 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/11 "2008-09-04T17:58:42Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > See [SL-1 - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SL-1#The_accident) > > There are reports it wasn’t an accident, but suicide. > **[USS Iowa (BB-61)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Iowa_(BB-61)#1989_Turret_Explosion)** > > USS Iowa (BB-61) is a retired battleship, the lead ship of her class, and the fourth in the United States Navy to be named after the state of Iowa. Owing to the cancellation of the Montana-class battleships, Iowa is the last lead ship of any class of United States battleships and was the only ship of her class to serve in the Atlantic Ocean during World War II. > During World War II, she carried President Franklin D. Roosevelt across the Atlantic to Mers El Kébir, Algeria, en route to a confer... There are reports that this was an accident and not a suicide. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/12 "2008-09-04T20:21:09Z")
A recent event: [Toronto Propane Explosions](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Toronto_explosions) There’s a show starting on the Discovery channel this week (I think) called Shockwave, which seems to be about explosions and other similar events with huge effects/repercussions. Looks interesting, if I ever pay attention to when it’s supposed to air and watch it! ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/13 "2008-09-04T20:42:29Z")
How about the [Boston Molasses Disaster](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_Molasses_Disaster)? A wave of molasses poured through the streets killing 21 and injuring 150. I mean, it’s shocking because you don’t think that molasses can flow so fast or do what it did: _"The molasses wave was of sufficient force to break the girders of the adjacent Boston Elevated Railway’s Atlantic Avenue structure and lift a train off the tracks_. :eek: Not as freaky as decompression that makes you explode though. ---
**Author:** ![postcards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8e8cbc/32.png) [@postcards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/postcards)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/14 "2008-09-04T21:36:01Z")
[The Halifax Explosion](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halifax_Explosion) ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/15 "2008-09-04T23:00:49Z")
[This](http://www.chemaxx.com/explosion1.htm) is the first thing that came to mind. One of my favorite videos of all time – I just wish no one had died in the process. ETA: Better video link [here](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8HcQ1Va6RY). If I recall correctly, the second explosion registered a 3.3 on the Richter Scale. ---
**Author:** ![Tabula\_Rasa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a9adbd/32.png) [@Tabula\_Rasa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tabula_Rasa)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/16 "2008-09-04T23:38:53Z")
> [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](#): > > How about the [Boston Molasses Disaster](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_Molasses_Disaster)? A wave of molasses poured through the streets killing 21 and injuring 150. > > I mean, it’s shocking because you don’t think that molasses can flow so fast or do what it did: _"The molasses wave was of sufficient force to break the girders of the adjacent Boston Elevated Railway’s Atlantic Avenue structure and lift a train off the tracks_. > > :eek: > > Not as freaky as decompression that makes you explode though. Not just molasses, but _molasses in January_!! ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2008, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/17 "2008-09-05T02:40:45Z")
Here is a list of [significant disasters](http://www.easternct.edu/depts/amerst/disasters.htm) My first thought was the [Texas City disaster](http://www.essortment.com/all/texascityexplo_rkvi.htm) in 1947. > [@](#): > > On April 16, 1947 the town of Texas City had 16,000 registered inhabitants but by the time the last body was found a month later, six hundred were known dead. The exact number will never be known as many of the victims were incinerated in the blast and there were no remains to be found. Or the [Galveston hurricane of 1900](http://www.disastercenter.com/texas/1900GH.htm) that killed more than 8000 people. ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2008, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/18 "2008-09-05T03:02:11Z")
I can’t find a link to this, because I can’t remember enough of the details to google one, although perhaps another NE Ohio Doper can. It happened in the Akron area. It only affected one person, but it was plenty shocking. A young man was pulled into some sort of industrial shredding machinery. I believe his brother was the one who finally shut the machine off and/or freed him. What the newspapers reported was that he lost everything “from the navel down.” It’s amazing that he didn’t die of shock immediately from such a horrific injury. It’s amazing that he survived all the surgeries. But he’s alive today. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2008, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/19 "2008-09-05T03:44:39Z")
> [@freckafree](#): > > I can’t find a link to this, because I can’t remember enough of the details to google one, although perhaps another NE Ohio Doper can. It happened in the Akron area. > > It only affected one person, but it was plenty shocking. A young man was pulled into some sort of industrial shredding machinery. I believe his brother was the one who finally shut the machine off and/or freed him. What the newspapers reported was that he lost everything “from the navel down.” > > It’s amazing that he didn’t die of shock immediately from such a horrific injury. It’s amazing that he survived all the surgeries. But he’s alive today. I’m not a NE Ohio Doper, but I Googled "Akron brother ‘navel down’ " and found this: [http://forums.ebay.com/db2/thread.jspa?threadID=1000198512](http://forums.ebay.com/db2/thread.jspa?threadID=1000198512) (Yes, really, it’s an article about this guy. Why on eBay, I have no idea.) Probably some better links out there (I had trouble with the Akron newspaper archives, but maybe someone else can tease out a link or two). ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2008, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000/20 "2008-09-05T04:21:05Z")
> [@Scarlett67](#): > > I’m not a NE Ohio Doper, but I Googled "Akron brother ‘navel down’ " and found this: > [http://forums.ebay.com/db2/thread.jspa?threadID=1000198512](http://forums.ebay.com/db2/thread.jspa?threadID=1000198512) (Yes, really, it’s an article about this guy. Why on eBay, I have no idea.). I tried a lot of keywords, but not that combo. I bow to your superior Google-foo. I don’t know why it’s on eBay either. What’s reported is quite a Glurge-fest, though. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worlds-most-shocking-industrial-accidents/462000.md?page=2)