1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:03,760 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff you missed in History class from how 2 00:00:03,800 --> 00:00:13,720 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot Com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:13,760 --> 00:00:16,840 Speaker 1: I'm Debilian Choker Boarding and I'm fair. And every year 4 00:00:16,920 --> 00:00:20,880 Speaker 1: on December seven, Americans remember the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, 5 00:00:20,920 --> 00:00:25,000 Speaker 1: in which was an attack that killed thousands and launched 6 00:00:25,040 --> 00:00:28,200 Speaker 1: the US into World War Two. But what many Americans 7 00:00:28,280 --> 00:00:30,720 Speaker 1: might not know is that our neighbor to the north, Canada, 8 00:00:31,120 --> 00:00:34,760 Speaker 1: commemorates a sad historical moment of its own just one 9 00:00:34,840 --> 00:00:39,360 Speaker 1: day before, and that's the Halifax explosion. And the Halifax explosion, 10 00:00:39,400 --> 00:00:42,919 Speaker 1: which took place on December six, nine seventeen, has been 11 00:00:42,960 --> 00:00:46,400 Speaker 1: called one of the worst disasters in Canada's history, one 12 00:00:46,440 --> 00:00:50,520 Speaker 1: of the largest man made non nuclear explosions in history ever, 13 00:00:51,080 --> 00:00:54,800 Speaker 1: and the largest man made explosion prior to Hiroshima. So 14 00:00:54,840 --> 00:00:57,720 Speaker 1: it's not going to be our most uplifting episode ever, 15 00:00:57,760 --> 00:00:59,720 Speaker 1: as you can tell, but it is one of our 16 00:00:59,760 --> 00:01:02,760 Speaker 1: most requested and I would say especially in the past year, 17 00:01:02,800 --> 00:01:06,120 Speaker 1: I've noticed a huge uptick in request for this topic, 18 00:01:06,240 --> 00:01:10,320 Speaker 1: and um certainly as we've approached the anniversary date of 19 00:01:10,400 --> 00:01:14,120 Speaker 1: December six as well. But the story of this disaster 20 00:01:14,480 --> 00:01:17,560 Speaker 1: starts with two ships which weren't even supposed to be 21 00:01:17,680 --> 00:01:20,800 Speaker 1: in Halifax at the same time in the first place, 22 00:01:21,160 --> 00:01:23,800 Speaker 1: trying to pass each other in the harbor. And so 23 00:01:24,080 --> 00:01:26,720 Speaker 1: we're going to tell you about what happened, what caused 24 00:01:26,760 --> 00:01:30,200 Speaker 1: the explosion, of course, the toll that it took on Halifax, 25 00:01:30,319 --> 00:01:33,679 Speaker 1: and the rescue effort that followed too, and then, of course, 26 00:01:33,760 --> 00:01:37,920 Speaker 1: because this is World War One, some suspicions kind of 27 00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:42,000 Speaker 1: an alternate history that people have thought up um and 28 00:01:42,200 --> 00:01:44,959 Speaker 1: assumed had to be the cause of a disaster of 29 00:01:45,000 --> 00:01:47,840 Speaker 1: this magnitude. But first we're gonna set the stage a 30 00:01:47,840 --> 00:01:50,160 Speaker 1: little bit to help people understand a little bit about 31 00:01:50,240 --> 00:01:54,800 Speaker 1: Halifax at this time during World War One. Some basic background. 32 00:01:54,920 --> 00:01:58,480 Speaker 1: Halifax was established as a fortified settlement by the British 33 00:01:58,480 --> 00:02:01,320 Speaker 1: in seventeen forty nine and had become the capital of 34 00:02:01,360 --> 00:02:04,280 Speaker 1: Nova Scotia by nineteen hundred. It had served as a 35 00:02:04,320 --> 00:02:07,440 Speaker 1: garrison city to the British Empire armies, but after British 36 00:02:07,520 --> 00:02:10,040 Speaker 1: forces left in nineteen oh six, it needed kind of 37 00:02:10,040 --> 00:02:13,560 Speaker 1: a new purpose, so the city's port facilities grew and 38 00:02:13,600 --> 00:02:17,919 Speaker 1: new factories were developed, turning Halifax into Nova Scotia's commercial center. 39 00:02:18,320 --> 00:02:24,079 Speaker 1: Portly makeover so because of its port facilities, Halifax became 40 00:02:24,280 --> 00:02:27,560 Speaker 1: a key player in the Allied war effort during World 41 00:02:27,600 --> 00:02:30,440 Speaker 1: War One, even though it was obviously pretty far removed 42 00:02:30,480 --> 00:02:33,720 Speaker 1: from the main battlefields in the war. But when the 43 00:02:33,760 --> 00:02:38,240 Speaker 1: war started in nineteen fourteen, Canada had gotten involved, had 44 00:02:38,280 --> 00:02:42,360 Speaker 1: pledged its support to Great Britain to resist German aggression, 45 00:02:42,520 --> 00:02:46,400 Speaker 1: and so the country's factory started to produce munitions and 46 00:02:46,440 --> 00:02:49,520 Speaker 1: other supplies as a way of all their supporting the war, 47 00:02:49,639 --> 00:02:53,200 Speaker 1: and since it was Canada's Since Halifax was Canada's main 48 00:02:53,400 --> 00:02:57,240 Speaker 1: port on the East Coast, it handled tons of shipping 49 00:02:57,320 --> 00:03:00,360 Speaker 1: during the war, like thousands of Allied cargo ships that 50 00:03:00,400 --> 00:03:04,040 Speaker 1: would go through its harbor before heading on over to Europe. 51 00:03:04,120 --> 00:03:09,520 Speaker 1: Everything from soldiers to munitions to food would pass through 52 00:03:09,760 --> 00:03:12,760 Speaker 1: halifax It's harbor, and because of its stance in the 53 00:03:12,760 --> 00:03:14,840 Speaker 1: war and the type of cargo that was passing through 54 00:03:14,840 --> 00:03:18,240 Speaker 1: the port, they did have to take some precautions. According 55 00:03:18,240 --> 00:03:21,400 Speaker 1: to a History magazine article by Andrew hynd And, nightly 56 00:03:21,480 --> 00:03:24,280 Speaker 1: blackout was an effect, for example, to protect the port 57 00:03:24,360 --> 00:03:28,120 Speaker 1: from German submarines. There was also an anti submarine boom, 58 00:03:28,320 --> 00:03:30,840 Speaker 1: or a kind of net that was also spread across 59 00:03:30,880 --> 00:03:33,520 Speaker 1: the entrance of the harbor from dusk to dawn to 60 00:03:33,639 --> 00:03:36,360 Speaker 1: restrict access to the harbor during the night, and that's 61 00:03:36,360 --> 00:03:40,120 Speaker 1: going to be pretty crucial to the story. So the 62 00:03:40,400 --> 00:03:44,880 Speaker 1: night of December five, nineteen seventeen, when our story begins, 63 00:03:44,920 --> 00:03:48,960 Speaker 1: there were two ships that were unwillingly stuck on either 64 00:03:49,040 --> 00:03:51,520 Speaker 1: side of this anti submarine boom, the one stuck on 65 00:03:51,560 --> 00:03:53,960 Speaker 1: the outside, one stuck on the inside. One was a 66 00:03:54,000 --> 00:03:57,240 Speaker 1: French freighter called the mont Blanc, and there was also 67 00:03:57,400 --> 00:04:01,839 Speaker 1: a Norwegian freighter called them And the fact that these 68 00:04:01,880 --> 00:04:04,600 Speaker 1: two ships were even there at the same time was 69 00:04:04,680 --> 00:04:07,400 Speaker 1: kind of a coincidence, wasn't it. It was the Emo, 70 00:04:07,560 --> 00:04:10,840 Speaker 1: under the command of Captain Hawk and Frome was supposed 71 00:04:10,840 --> 00:04:12,520 Speaker 1: to be on its way to New York to pick 72 00:04:12,600 --> 00:04:15,240 Speaker 1: up a cargo of food for the Belgian people. He 73 00:04:15,280 --> 00:04:17,839 Speaker 1: had wanted to sail that afternoon. The captain did, but 74 00:04:17,960 --> 00:04:21,159 Speaker 1: according to an article by Jesse Bradley and Military History, 75 00:04:21,520 --> 00:04:24,360 Speaker 1: the coal he'd ordered for three pm delivery didn't show 76 00:04:24,440 --> 00:04:27,760 Speaker 1: up until five thirty, when the harbor exit was already 77 00:04:27,760 --> 00:04:30,680 Speaker 1: blocked off. On the other hand, the mont block which 78 00:04:30,760 --> 00:04:34,600 Speaker 1: was commanded by Captain a may Limedic, was supposed to 79 00:04:34,720 --> 00:04:37,320 Speaker 1: arrive on the following day, December six, but it showed 80 00:04:37,360 --> 00:04:39,960 Speaker 1: up late in the afternoon of December five instead, which 81 00:04:40,040 --> 00:04:42,279 Speaker 1: was too late to make it into the harbor. But 82 00:04:42,360 --> 00:04:44,520 Speaker 1: they went ahead and they picked up a pilot named 83 00:04:44,520 --> 00:04:48,440 Speaker 1: Francis Mackie Halifax. Just to explain the pilot thing, it 84 00:04:48,520 --> 00:04:51,320 Speaker 1: was a compulsory port, which meant that a pilot had 85 00:04:51,360 --> 00:04:53,159 Speaker 1: to be in charge of any ship that was entring 86 00:04:53,279 --> 00:04:56,920 Speaker 1: or leaving the harbor. And so they picked up this pilot, 87 00:04:56,920 --> 00:04:59,360 Speaker 1: and they had undergone an inspection by a Canadian naval 88 00:04:59,400 --> 00:05:01,839 Speaker 1: officer so that they would be good to go into 89 00:05:01,839 --> 00:05:04,039 Speaker 1: the harbor first thing into in the morning get on 90 00:05:04,080 --> 00:05:08,120 Speaker 1: with business. So there's another important thing to note about 91 00:05:08,320 --> 00:05:11,960 Speaker 1: the mont Blanc. Though the ship's cargo might have made 92 00:05:12,040 --> 00:05:15,080 Speaker 1: some of the crew pretty nervous, seeing how they were 93 00:05:15,200 --> 00:05:18,839 Speaker 1: on the wrong side the the unprotected side of that 94 00:05:19,000 --> 00:05:23,919 Speaker 1: submarine boom. They had two thousand three tons of picric 95 00:05:24,000 --> 00:05:27,920 Speaker 1: acid in the holds, two tons of t n T 96 00:05:28,680 --> 00:05:31,719 Speaker 1: and ten tons of gun cotton between the main and 97 00:05:31,800 --> 00:05:34,640 Speaker 1: spar decks. And then just just to add to things, 98 00:05:34,680 --> 00:05:37,479 Speaker 1: because that doesn't sound like enough, thirty five tons of 99 00:05:37,600 --> 00:05:41,560 Speaker 1: volatile Benzene and drums on the upper deck, and this 100 00:05:41,760 --> 00:05:45,960 Speaker 1: combined of course made them basically a huge floating explosive. 101 00:05:46,080 --> 00:05:49,360 Speaker 1: And according to that History magazine article, to Plana mentioned, 102 00:05:49,400 --> 00:05:53,200 Speaker 1: having those drums of Bensall on the ship's deck was 103 00:05:53,279 --> 00:05:56,400 Speaker 1: against regulations in the first place, So the ship was 104 00:05:56,560 --> 00:06:01,039 Speaker 1: defying regulations by having those kind of explosives on deck, 105 00:06:01,120 --> 00:06:04,640 Speaker 1: but also by not flying a red flag to signal 106 00:06:04,720 --> 00:06:07,320 Speaker 1: that they had munitions on board. There's a reason why 107 00:06:07,360 --> 00:06:09,120 Speaker 1: they didn't do it. It was because they were on 108 00:06:09,160 --> 00:06:12,640 Speaker 1: the wrong side of that submarine net and the captain 109 00:06:12,680 --> 00:06:16,760 Speaker 1: didn't want to let every German ship in the area 110 00:06:16,960 --> 00:06:19,600 Speaker 1: or any potential Germans in the area know that he 111 00:06:19,720 --> 00:06:22,159 Speaker 1: was carrying all these munitions and was out there in 112 00:06:22,160 --> 00:06:24,800 Speaker 1: the open um for attack. Yeah, he thought it could 113 00:06:24,800 --> 00:06:27,760 Speaker 1: turn them into a target. So the two ships are 114 00:06:27,839 --> 00:06:30,000 Speaker 1: stuck where they are for the night, on either end 115 00:06:30,000 --> 00:06:32,719 Speaker 1: of the harbor. Just to explain the harbor a little bit, 116 00:06:32,800 --> 00:06:35,000 Speaker 1: because it can be kind of confusing if you can't 117 00:06:35,279 --> 00:06:39,080 Speaker 1: see a picture of it. It's this long inlet. There's 118 00:06:39,120 --> 00:06:42,080 Speaker 1: Bedford Basin where the EMO was for the night, and 119 00:06:42,120 --> 00:06:44,240 Speaker 1: that's kind of at the top, and then there was 120 00:06:44,360 --> 00:06:47,560 Speaker 1: Halifax Harbor, which opens up into the Atlantic, and that's 121 00:06:47,680 --> 00:06:50,320 Speaker 1: kind of at the bottom, and that's where the mont 122 00:06:50,320 --> 00:06:54,080 Speaker 1: Blanc was. Connecting these two anchorage areas is what's called 123 00:06:54,120 --> 00:06:56,920 Speaker 1: the Narrows, and that's a passage that's about a mile 124 00:06:57,040 --> 00:07:00,800 Speaker 1: long and only about half a mile y. So you 125 00:07:00,839 --> 00:07:03,280 Speaker 1: really need to follow the rules while traveling. And I'm 126 00:07:03,320 --> 00:07:05,560 Speaker 1: imagining it kind of like an hour glass. Is that correct? 127 00:07:05,600 --> 00:07:07,800 Speaker 1: I haven't actually seen the map. I mean I guess 128 00:07:07,839 --> 00:07:10,080 Speaker 1: that you could sort of related like an hour glass 129 00:07:10,120 --> 00:07:12,280 Speaker 1: with one side that's clearly a lot smaller than the 130 00:07:12,320 --> 00:07:15,160 Speaker 1: other generally, but a narrow part in between, a narrow 131 00:07:15,240 --> 00:07:16,960 Speaker 1: part in between them. Yeah, that's the key part to 132 00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:19,200 Speaker 1: remember here is it's kind of like two areas where 133 00:07:19,200 --> 00:07:21,119 Speaker 1: you could anchor your ship and then a long, narrow 134 00:07:21,120 --> 00:07:23,440 Speaker 1: part in between that you need to travel to get 135 00:07:23,480 --> 00:07:27,680 Speaker 1: a pilot to navigate. And so the captain of the Emo, 136 00:07:28,120 --> 00:07:30,480 Speaker 1: he was not at all happy about the situation about 137 00:07:30,520 --> 00:07:32,720 Speaker 1: being stuck for the night. He was really anxious to 138 00:07:32,760 --> 00:07:35,760 Speaker 1: get going, but his pilot, William Hayes, had agreed to 139 00:07:35,760 --> 00:07:37,640 Speaker 1: spend the night on board so that they could get 140 00:07:37,640 --> 00:07:40,000 Speaker 1: going first thing in the morning. The guys on the 141 00:07:40,000 --> 00:07:42,480 Speaker 1: monk kind of had the same idea. A little after 142 00:07:42,520 --> 00:07:46,080 Speaker 1: seven thirty am, they raised their anchor and they started 143 00:07:46,080 --> 00:07:49,640 Speaker 1: traveling northward towards the Narrows and an inbound lane, traveling 144 00:07:49,680 --> 00:07:52,440 Speaker 1: at a speed of about four knots. And then a 145 00:07:52,480 --> 00:07:55,400 Speaker 1: little after eight am, the EMO entered the north end 146 00:07:55,400 --> 00:07:58,680 Speaker 1: of the Narrows, heading southward at about seven knots, even 147 00:07:58,680 --> 00:08:00,600 Speaker 1: though you weren't supposed to go fast sster than five 148 00:08:00,640 --> 00:08:04,440 Speaker 1: knots in the harbor, So they're speeding along, I guess 149 00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:07,560 Speaker 1: trying to make up for lost time, And I mean 150 00:08:07,600 --> 00:08:09,440 Speaker 1: the captain of the EMO was just in a real hurry. 151 00:08:09,480 --> 00:08:12,480 Speaker 1: Some sources suggests that the ship didn't even have official 152 00:08:12,520 --> 00:08:14,720 Speaker 1: permission to depart when it took off. They were just 153 00:08:14,720 --> 00:08:17,480 Speaker 1: going to get going. But the ships were still a 154 00:08:17,560 --> 00:08:21,640 Speaker 1: mile apart at this point when their first entering the channel, 155 00:08:21,760 --> 00:08:24,560 Speaker 1: traveling toward each other, and while it was barreling down 156 00:08:24,600 --> 00:08:30,280 Speaker 1: the narrows, though, the EMO ran into some unexpected traffic changes. 157 00:08:30,320 --> 00:08:33,080 Speaker 1: There was an American freighter that wanted to pass the 158 00:08:33,080 --> 00:08:36,600 Speaker 1: Email on the wrong side, but the ship signaled to 159 00:08:36,679 --> 00:08:38,480 Speaker 1: each other. They worked out how they were going to 160 00:08:38,520 --> 00:08:43,000 Speaker 1: approach this and they were able to make the pass safely. However, 161 00:08:43,400 --> 00:08:46,720 Speaker 1: this pass put the EMO in the wrong lane and 162 00:08:46,880 --> 00:08:50,560 Speaker 1: on a collision course therefore with the mont Block. So Mackie, 163 00:08:50,559 --> 00:08:53,280 Speaker 1: who was the pilot of the mont Blanc, saw the 164 00:08:53,360 --> 00:08:56,320 Speaker 1: email change course and at first he wasn't too worried, 165 00:08:56,320 --> 00:08:58,760 Speaker 1: you know, they had enough time to to correct it 166 00:08:58,800 --> 00:09:01,800 Speaker 1: to be safe, and he founded one siren signal to 167 00:09:01,880 --> 00:09:05,320 Speaker 1: indicate that his ship would stay to the starboard side, 168 00:09:05,720 --> 00:09:09,280 Speaker 1: but the EMO answered with two sirens to say that 169 00:09:09,360 --> 00:09:11,800 Speaker 1: it was going to steer to port, which would cause 170 00:09:11,880 --> 00:09:15,440 Speaker 1: the ships to collide. So kind of mixed signals here 171 00:09:15,480 --> 00:09:18,800 Speaker 1: and no agreement about how to proceed, and after that 172 00:09:18,880 --> 00:09:21,600 Speaker 1: it was really just mass confusion. They signaled to each 173 00:09:21,600 --> 00:09:24,720 Speaker 1: other again, but they couldn't work it out. Mackie tried 174 00:09:24,760 --> 00:09:28,400 Speaker 1: to stop the engine, but of course slowing down and 175 00:09:28,480 --> 00:09:31,679 Speaker 1: certainly stopping a big ship like that isn't very easy. 176 00:09:31,720 --> 00:09:34,600 Speaker 1: And then finally Mackie tried to pull the ship to 177 00:09:34,800 --> 00:09:38,839 Speaker 1: the left to just give the EMO room to pass by, 178 00:09:38,880 --> 00:09:40,679 Speaker 1: but it was too late at that point. A little 179 00:09:40,720 --> 00:09:44,040 Speaker 1: after eight thirty am, the EMO slammed into the mont 180 00:09:44,040 --> 00:09:47,920 Speaker 1: Blanc and opened up a wedge of about three meters deep. 181 00:09:48,320 --> 00:09:52,160 Speaker 1: Containers of benzine and picric acid smashed upon impact, and 182 00:09:52,240 --> 00:09:55,800 Speaker 1: then as the ships drifted apart, sparks from that grinding 183 00:09:55,880 --> 00:09:59,840 Speaker 1: steel of the ships started a fire. So Captain Limedeck 184 00:10:00,080 --> 00:10:02,480 Speaker 1: saw the riding on the wall immediately and ordered his 185 00:10:02,520 --> 00:10:05,720 Speaker 1: crew to abandon ship. They all jumped into lifeboats and 186 00:10:05,840 --> 00:10:07,960 Speaker 1: road just as fast as they could over to the 187 00:10:08,000 --> 00:10:10,520 Speaker 1: shore and took cover in the nearby woods. But they 188 00:10:10,520 --> 00:10:13,560 Speaker 1: were basically the only ones who knew how dangerous the 189 00:10:13,600 --> 00:10:16,080 Speaker 1: contents of the ship were. So of course, because the 190 00:10:16,080 --> 00:10:19,880 Speaker 1: ship was not flying that tell tale red flag, a 191 00:10:19,920 --> 00:10:21,960 Speaker 1: lot of people who weren't part of the crew didn't 192 00:10:22,040 --> 00:10:25,440 Speaker 1: realize how severe the situation was, that it didn't just 193 00:10:25,559 --> 00:10:28,680 Speaker 1: involve the two ships involved in the men on board. 194 00:10:28,760 --> 00:10:31,760 Speaker 1: So hundreds of people had stopped what they were doing, 195 00:10:31,840 --> 00:10:35,000 Speaker 1: and we're just gawking at this ship on fire with 196 00:10:35,120 --> 00:10:38,400 Speaker 1: a huge column of smoke above it, And the docks 197 00:10:38,440 --> 00:10:42,199 Speaker 1: started to fill up with spectators, and trams started to 198 00:10:42,240 --> 00:10:46,360 Speaker 1: slow down and allow passengers to check out the situation. 199 00:10:46,720 --> 00:10:49,760 Speaker 1: Rubber Neck a little bit, and people were gathered even 200 00:10:49,800 --> 00:10:52,600 Speaker 1: at the windows of their homes and office buildings and 201 00:10:52,840 --> 00:10:56,240 Speaker 1: um watching from far off factory roofs to just see 202 00:10:56,679 --> 00:11:00,240 Speaker 1: what disaster was occurring down in the harbor. The fire 203 00:11:00,240 --> 00:11:03,360 Speaker 1: department was alerted and so they sent people over, and 204 00:11:03,440 --> 00:11:06,520 Speaker 1: a lot of small boats were approaching the Mont Blanc 205 00:11:06,600 --> 00:11:09,720 Speaker 1: trying to fight the fire as the boat as the ship, 206 00:11:09,800 --> 00:11:12,640 Speaker 1: i should say, was drifting across the channel and eventually 207 00:11:12,679 --> 00:11:16,559 Speaker 1: stopped at Pier six. And this all just reminds me 208 00:11:16,679 --> 00:11:19,120 Speaker 1: of what goes on kind of you know, have you 209 00:11:19,160 --> 00:11:21,840 Speaker 1: ever been one of those tornado warning situations where people 210 00:11:21,840 --> 00:11:23,199 Speaker 1: all of a sudden want to like run out of 211 00:11:23,240 --> 00:11:25,160 Speaker 1: their houses or stand at the windows and look at 212 00:11:25,200 --> 00:11:28,120 Speaker 1: what's about to happen. You just feel like it's so bad, 213 00:11:28,120 --> 00:11:31,200 Speaker 1: like don't watch, just take cover. It's like one of 214 00:11:31,200 --> 00:11:33,319 Speaker 1: those moments. But a few people did have an idea 215 00:11:33,320 --> 00:11:36,040 Speaker 1: of what was going on and they took action. For example, 216 00:11:36,080 --> 00:11:38,960 Speaker 1: a trained dispatcher at Richmond Station who had been warned 217 00:11:39,000 --> 00:11:41,640 Speaker 1: by a sailor state at his post to stop a 218 00:11:41,679 --> 00:11:44,480 Speaker 1: passenger train from coming into the area. He sent a 219 00:11:44,520 --> 00:11:48,720 Speaker 1: telegraph that said, quote stop trains, ammunition ship on fire 220 00:11:49,160 --> 00:11:53,560 Speaker 1: making for Pier six, goodbye. So all of this was 221 00:11:53,640 --> 00:11:56,600 Speaker 1: going down, all of this gawking and trying to get 222 00:11:56,640 --> 00:11:59,199 Speaker 1: a look at at the disaster the wreck and try 223 00:11:59,240 --> 00:12:01,520 Speaker 1: and help, and try to help too, of course, when 224 00:12:01,679 --> 00:12:05,800 Speaker 1: at nine oh six am the mont Blanc blew up 225 00:12:06,000 --> 00:12:09,560 Speaker 1: and the ship was shattered into bits. The blast sent 226 00:12:09,679 --> 00:12:12,920 Speaker 1: smoke and debrise somewhere from three to five miles into 227 00:12:12,920 --> 00:12:16,160 Speaker 1: the sky, and of course soon enough all of those 228 00:12:16,200 --> 00:12:19,360 Speaker 1: ship fragments came raining down on the north end of 229 00:12:19,360 --> 00:12:23,680 Speaker 1: the city, hitting people, hitting buildings. The ship's gun, for example, 230 00:12:23,800 --> 00:12:26,760 Speaker 1: landed five point five kilometers away, and it said that 231 00:12:26,800 --> 00:12:30,240 Speaker 1: the shock from the explosion was felt as far as 232 00:12:30,360 --> 00:12:35,000 Speaker 1: three kilometers away. The harbor bed was split and laid bare, 233 00:12:35,200 --> 00:12:38,200 Speaker 1: and the rocks from it were also thrown around. And 234 00:12:38,240 --> 00:12:40,600 Speaker 1: when the sea rushed back to fill in that hole 235 00:12:40,640 --> 00:12:43,960 Speaker 1: in the harbor bed, it's sent a huge tidal wave inland, 236 00:12:44,400 --> 00:12:47,800 Speaker 1: which affected people who were standing there on the piers watching. 237 00:12:47,880 --> 00:12:49,840 Speaker 1: I think that's the most striking image for me to 238 00:12:49,840 --> 00:12:52,880 Speaker 1: try to imagine, to the harbor bed just cleared of water, 239 00:12:53,520 --> 00:12:57,600 Speaker 1: this empty pit and then wosh filling back in. Other 240 00:12:57,640 --> 00:13:00,320 Speaker 1: ships in the harbor were destroyed or severely d imaged. 241 00:13:00,360 --> 00:13:02,840 Speaker 1: Of course. The Emo, for example, was blown ashore and 242 00:13:02,920 --> 00:13:06,200 Speaker 1: its captain, the pilot Haze, and five crewmen were all killed. 243 00:13:06,760 --> 00:13:09,640 Speaker 1: A split second after that explosion, there was also this 244 00:13:09,720 --> 00:13:13,880 Speaker 1: huge air concussion, a kind of shock wave that instantly 245 00:13:13,920 --> 00:13:17,840 Speaker 1: destroyed everything in its path. Buildings and bridges collapsed, vehicles 246 00:13:17,840 --> 00:13:22,000 Speaker 1: were thrown around, roads were cracked, tree snapped. Even buildings 247 00:13:22,000 --> 00:13:25,440 Speaker 1: that withstood that wave lost their windows, and some of 248 00:13:25,440 --> 00:13:28,120 Speaker 1: those buildings still fell when that wreckage that we mentioned 249 00:13:28,120 --> 00:13:30,720 Speaker 1: came raining down face sky. Yeah, and that wave also 250 00:13:30,880 --> 00:13:34,160 Speaker 1: killed hundreds of people instantly when they were hit by 251 00:13:34,160 --> 00:13:36,640 Speaker 1: the shock wave, and many more were trapped in the 252 00:13:36,720 --> 00:13:40,400 Speaker 1: ruins of buildings and became victims of the third onslot, 253 00:13:40,440 --> 00:13:43,960 Speaker 1: which were fires that sprang up everywhere as results of 254 00:13:44,040 --> 00:13:47,800 Speaker 1: damaged gas manes and overturned wood stoves and kindling in homes. 255 00:13:47,840 --> 00:13:51,679 Speaker 1: We talked about that effect of earthquakes and things like 256 00:13:51,760 --> 00:13:55,199 Speaker 1: that a little bit in our fire episodes San Francisco Fire. 257 00:13:55,280 --> 00:13:59,839 Speaker 1: But basically, this entire district of Halifax called Richmond and 258 00:14:00,320 --> 00:14:04,120 Speaker 1: some areas beyond that were completely decimated in just a 259 00:14:04,160 --> 00:14:07,640 Speaker 1: matter of minutes. About two thousand people were dead, nine 260 00:14:07,679 --> 00:14:11,760 Speaker 1: thousand more were injured and needed medical treatment, and about 261 00:14:11,800 --> 00:14:14,920 Speaker 1: two thousand buildings were really badly damage, which meant that 262 00:14:15,000 --> 00:14:19,920 Speaker 1: approximately fifteen thousand people were now homeless, and that's really 263 00:14:19,960 --> 00:14:23,200 Speaker 1: a low estimate because it only counts those people who 264 00:14:23,200 --> 00:14:25,680 Speaker 1: were found. Yeah, the death tolls considered by a lot 265 00:14:25,720 --> 00:14:28,560 Speaker 1: of people to be too low. Among the dead were 266 00:14:28,680 --> 00:14:31,680 Speaker 1: the city's fire chief and the deputy fire chief who 267 00:14:31,680 --> 00:14:34,560 Speaker 1: had gotten to Pier six right before the explosion. Two 268 00:14:34,680 --> 00:14:38,040 Speaker 1: hundred children and the staff of the city's orphanage, about 269 00:14:38,080 --> 00:14:41,920 Speaker 1: one hundred students at Richmond School, sixty nine employees of 270 00:14:42,000 --> 00:14:46,080 Speaker 1: the Canadian Government Railway, including the heroic Vince Coleman that 271 00:14:46,120 --> 00:14:50,600 Speaker 1: we mentioned who sent that telegraph out, and many many others. However, 272 00:14:51,040 --> 00:14:53,720 Speaker 1: though it kind of defies logic, because they were so 273 00:14:53,840 --> 00:14:57,680 Speaker 1: close to the situation to start with, Captain Limaedeck and Mackie, 274 00:14:57,720 --> 00:15:00,600 Speaker 1: who had taken shelter in the woods they survived. Who 275 00:15:00,640 --> 00:15:02,320 Speaker 1: would figure that the guys who had been on the 276 00:15:02,360 --> 00:15:05,920 Speaker 1: ship with the explosives, who jumped overboard and swam to 277 00:15:06,120 --> 00:15:10,080 Speaker 1: the woods would make it. It's really surprising, but the 278 00:15:10,160 --> 00:15:14,280 Speaker 1: rescue effort started almost immediately to to deal with this 279 00:15:14,480 --> 00:15:17,760 Speaker 1: um this explosion and the after effects. About thirty minutes 280 00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:21,360 Speaker 1: after the explosion is when things started to happen. People 281 00:15:21,400 --> 00:15:24,320 Speaker 1: began to dig out the dead and look for survivors. 282 00:15:24,400 --> 00:15:28,160 Speaker 1: But remember this is December and it is Nova Scotia, 283 00:15:28,320 --> 00:15:31,440 Speaker 1: so their works soon got a lot tougher because a 284 00:15:31,600 --> 00:15:34,200 Speaker 1: blizzard started later in the day and it was like 285 00:15:34,320 --> 00:15:37,640 Speaker 1: the worst blizzard in the last twenty perfect timing, right, 286 00:15:37,720 --> 00:15:40,160 Speaker 1: So that was of course bad news for all those 287 00:15:40,160 --> 00:15:42,800 Speaker 1: people who were now homeless, who didn't have any shelter, 288 00:15:43,480 --> 00:15:47,640 Speaker 1: and there was also concern about another potential explosion. All 289 00:15:47,680 --> 00:15:50,600 Speaker 1: of those fires that had started and spread since the 290 00:15:50,640 --> 00:15:53,880 Speaker 1: first explosion were still a very major threat because they 291 00:15:53,880 --> 00:15:57,960 Speaker 1: were quickly heading for the powder magazine at the Wellington 292 00:15:58,040 --> 00:16:02,080 Speaker 1: Military Barracks. The caused quite a bit of panic. People, 293 00:16:02,320 --> 00:16:05,040 Speaker 1: even the injured ones, started heading for higher ground and 294 00:16:05,080 --> 00:16:07,640 Speaker 1: they were encouraged to by authority, so they were being 295 00:16:07,680 --> 00:16:11,080 Speaker 1: sent up. But soldiers were able to flood the munitions 296 00:16:11,120 --> 00:16:13,240 Speaker 1: dump and keep the fire away from it, so there 297 00:16:13,280 --> 00:16:15,800 Speaker 1: wasn't a second explosion after all, so it wasn't quite 298 00:16:16,200 --> 00:16:18,320 Speaker 1: as bad as they thought it could be, and that 299 00:16:18,400 --> 00:16:20,320 Speaker 1: was a really good thing too, because there were already 300 00:16:20,360 --> 00:16:23,000 Speaker 1: so many people who were really badly in need of doctors, 301 00:16:23,080 --> 00:16:26,240 Speaker 1: medical supplies, and just places to care for the injured. 302 00:16:26,680 --> 00:16:29,320 Speaker 1: Doctors nurses and supplies started to come in from other 303 00:16:29,960 --> 00:16:32,440 Speaker 1: Nova Scotia towns that day, and by the next day 304 00:16:32,480 --> 00:16:35,560 Speaker 1: help was coming in from other Canadian provinces too, and 305 00:16:35,600 --> 00:16:39,320 Speaker 1: the international response here was really significant as well. By 306 00:16:39,400 --> 00:16:42,040 Speaker 1: two thirty that day, the U. S. Navy ships the 307 00:16:42,080 --> 00:16:44,920 Speaker 1: Tacoma and the von Stoeben, on their way back from Europe, 308 00:16:44,920 --> 00:16:47,200 Speaker 1: came into the harbor and met up with the U. S. 309 00:16:47,360 --> 00:16:49,640 Speaker 1: S Colony and the U S. Coast Guard Cutter Moral. 310 00:16:50,000 --> 00:16:52,880 Speaker 1: They offered up soldiers and marines to help patrol the area, 311 00:16:53,040 --> 00:16:55,760 Speaker 1: and they turned the old Colony into a hospital ship 312 00:16:55,840 --> 00:16:58,680 Speaker 1: with U. S. Navy docks running it along with some 313 00:16:58,760 --> 00:17:02,120 Speaker 1: Canadian nurses, and over the next few days trains full 314 00:17:02,160 --> 00:17:05,560 Speaker 1: of surgeons, doctors and nurses and more medical supplies came 315 00:17:05,560 --> 00:17:08,960 Speaker 1: in from New England again, though facilities were packed so 316 00:17:09,080 --> 00:17:11,480 Speaker 1: during this time doctors were forced to treat people and 317 00:17:11,520 --> 00:17:15,440 Speaker 1: pretty much every room of any available hospital, including the kitchens, 318 00:17:15,800 --> 00:17:20,440 Speaker 1: the corridors, and the closets. Some treated people on trains 319 00:17:20,560 --> 00:17:24,040 Speaker 1: or in homes, in doctor's offices, or even drug stores, 320 00:17:24,200 --> 00:17:27,320 Speaker 1: making do with what they could. The injuries, too, were 321 00:17:27,400 --> 00:17:29,440 Speaker 1: really horrific, not the kind of thing that you would 322 00:17:29,480 --> 00:17:32,000 Speaker 1: want to be treating on a train or in somebody's home. 323 00:17:32,160 --> 00:17:34,800 Speaker 1: And um, one of the reasons why the injuries were 324 00:17:34,800 --> 00:17:37,239 Speaker 1: so bad was because of all of that glass and 325 00:17:37,280 --> 00:17:40,600 Speaker 1: the debris that had been flying around and hitting people. 326 00:17:40,640 --> 00:17:43,440 Speaker 1: And will spare you some of the truly gory details, 327 00:17:43,480 --> 00:17:46,520 Speaker 1: but eye injuries are often said to have been the 328 00:17:46,560 --> 00:17:49,160 Speaker 1: most prevalent. And I mean, if you if you think 329 00:17:49,200 --> 00:17:51,720 Speaker 1: about what we mentioned earlier, all those people running up 330 00:17:51,720 --> 00:17:54,359 Speaker 1: to their windows to see the ship on fire and 331 00:17:54,400 --> 00:17:57,480 Speaker 1: watching and and then getting faced with that explosion and 332 00:17:58,200 --> 00:18:00,600 Speaker 1: h A lot of people ultimately needed to have one 333 00:18:00,840 --> 00:18:05,200 Speaker 1: or both eyes removed. But besides medical care, there were 334 00:18:05,320 --> 00:18:08,000 Speaker 1: other types of relief that were needed. By the afternoon 335 00:18:08,119 --> 00:18:11,600 Speaker 1: of the explosion, the Halifax Relief Committee, which was a 336 00:18:11,680 --> 00:18:15,520 Speaker 1: volunteer organization, was organized to help find ways to shelter 337 00:18:15,640 --> 00:18:18,520 Speaker 1: the homeless, and identify the dead and the injured, and 338 00:18:18,920 --> 00:18:22,960 Speaker 1: construct some sort of temporary housing for people to live 339 00:18:23,000 --> 00:18:25,280 Speaker 1: through this blizzard. I mean, how bad would it be 340 00:18:25,400 --> 00:18:29,040 Speaker 1: to survive the explosion and then freeze? Kidding? They also 341 00:18:29,080 --> 00:18:32,479 Speaker 1: started to manage the donations that came in from around 342 00:18:32,520 --> 00:18:35,520 Speaker 1: the world. Millions of dollars came in from several countries, 343 00:18:35,560 --> 00:18:38,560 Speaker 1: including Britain, of course, and as far away as Australia. 344 00:18:38,960 --> 00:18:42,000 Speaker 1: The US also started to send in supplies like food, clothing, 345 00:18:42,040 --> 00:18:45,800 Speaker 1: and building materials including glass and the people who could 346 00:18:45,800 --> 00:18:48,080 Speaker 1: install it. In the meantime, though, a lot of the 347 00:18:48,080 --> 00:18:51,320 Speaker 1: homeless had to stay intense and that brutal cold weather. 348 00:18:51,960 --> 00:18:57,400 Speaker 1: So on December thirteenth, nineteen seventeen, the ret commissioners started 349 00:18:57,440 --> 00:19:00,480 Speaker 1: to investigate the explosion and the court. In to the 350 00:19:00,680 --> 00:19:04,399 Speaker 1: military history article that we mentioned earlier, the chairman of 351 00:19:04,440 --> 00:19:08,320 Speaker 1: this commission, Judge Arthur Drysdale, was really anti French and 352 00:19:08,359 --> 00:19:10,639 Speaker 1: he felt that the pilot and the captain of the 353 00:19:10,680 --> 00:19:14,840 Speaker 1: mont Blanc were quote wholly responsible and um it did 354 00:19:14,840 --> 00:19:17,040 Speaker 1: seem like they were going to be held responsible for 355 00:19:17,400 --> 00:19:20,400 Speaker 1: at least a small aspect of it. Initially, Captain Limeduck 356 00:19:20,560 --> 00:19:24,720 Speaker 1: and Francis Mackie were arrested and charged with manslaughter for 357 00:19:24,800 --> 00:19:28,159 Speaker 1: causing the death of William Hayes, who was the pilot 358 00:19:28,200 --> 00:19:31,000 Speaker 1: of the EMO as we as we mentioned earlier, and 359 00:19:31,080 --> 00:19:34,199 Speaker 1: the charges were eventually dropped and it was ruled that 360 00:19:34,280 --> 00:19:37,479 Speaker 1: both the EMO and the mont Blanc were at fault. 361 00:19:38,520 --> 00:19:41,720 Speaker 1: That didn't stop people from having other theories about what 362 00:19:41,800 --> 00:19:44,280 Speaker 1: really happened. Oh yeah, we've always got some other theories, 363 00:19:44,359 --> 00:19:49,240 Speaker 1: don't so. Some people for some time actually believed that 364 00:19:49,280 --> 00:19:52,320 Speaker 1: Germany was behind the explosion. After all, it was during 365 00:19:52,359 --> 00:19:55,040 Speaker 1: the war, and if you hadn't witnessed the explosion yourself, 366 00:19:55,160 --> 00:19:57,160 Speaker 1: that you can imagine that might be the first thing 367 00:19:57,240 --> 00:19:59,919 Speaker 1: that comes to your mind. Some people thought it was 368 00:20:00,119 --> 00:20:03,240 Speaker 1: a zeppelin attack or a bombardment from a battle fleet. 369 00:20:03,680 --> 00:20:06,720 Speaker 1: Still others later on thought that sabotage was behind this. 370 00:20:06,960 --> 00:20:10,119 Speaker 1: These people think that the emo's captain and co pilot 371 00:20:10,160 --> 00:20:13,119 Speaker 1: were both murdered by a crew member just before the explosion, 372 00:20:13,440 --> 00:20:16,320 Speaker 1: allowing a German spy to come on board and orchestrate 373 00:20:16,359 --> 00:20:18,919 Speaker 1: the accident, but witnesses have said that they saw the 374 00:20:19,000 --> 00:20:22,440 Speaker 1: captain giving all the commands. Later though, during an inquiry, 375 00:20:22,560 --> 00:20:25,600 Speaker 1: some harbor officers said that they had received calls inquiring 376 00:20:25,680 --> 00:20:28,520 Speaker 1: about the movements of the ships, and rumors started again 377 00:20:28,560 --> 00:20:33,080 Speaker 1: around when Dr Samuel Prince, who authored a study about 378 00:20:33,080 --> 00:20:37,120 Speaker 1: the explosion a sociological study, said that it could be sabotage. 379 00:20:37,480 --> 00:20:40,040 Speaker 1: There's been no definitive proof of this, though. These are 380 00:20:40,080 --> 00:20:43,560 Speaker 1: just ideas that people had around this time, especially Yeah, 381 00:20:43,640 --> 00:20:49,199 Speaker 1: so moving away from conspiracy theory and to rehabilitation and 382 00:20:49,240 --> 00:20:54,320 Speaker 1: the reconstruction of Halifax. It obviously took years to rehabilitate 383 00:20:54,359 --> 00:20:56,760 Speaker 1: the city and to identify the dead and to help 384 00:20:56,840 --> 00:21:00,480 Speaker 1: survivors find their families. And if you visit the website 385 00:21:00,520 --> 00:21:03,000 Speaker 1: of the Nova Scotia Archives, they have a whole section 386 00:21:03,280 --> 00:21:08,200 Speaker 1: on the Halifax explosion. Actually, since people started recommending this topic, 387 00:21:08,440 --> 00:21:11,040 Speaker 1: I've sometimes pointed them to that resoarch because it is 388 00:21:11,080 --> 00:21:15,119 Speaker 1: so great, and we follow the Nova Scotia Archives on Twitter. 389 00:21:15,240 --> 00:21:18,880 Speaker 1: They're really really nice about any research questions you might have, 390 00:21:18,960 --> 00:21:20,919 Speaker 1: so yeah, it's a it's a great place to go 391 00:21:21,040 --> 00:21:24,159 Speaker 1: to learn more about the disaster and to see how 392 00:21:24,200 --> 00:21:27,760 Speaker 1: Halifax was rebuilt. They have photos of the explosions aftermath 393 00:21:27,880 --> 00:21:29,920 Speaker 1: and a film clip that's kind of like a silent 394 00:21:29,960 --> 00:21:34,400 Speaker 1: movie that so disturbing too, because it is silent. Yes, 395 00:21:34,520 --> 00:21:36,760 Speaker 1: it's a very eerie And there's also a list of 396 00:21:36,760 --> 00:21:39,080 Speaker 1: those who died. And what I found to be really 397 00:21:39,119 --> 00:21:42,240 Speaker 1: interesting was the first hand accounts from some of the survivors. 398 00:21:42,640 --> 00:21:44,359 Speaker 1: So we have part of an example here of a 399 00:21:44,400 --> 00:21:47,119 Speaker 1: personal narrative given by a doctor M. J. Burris to 400 00:21:47,160 --> 00:21:51,360 Speaker 1: the director of the Halifax disaster Record office at nine o'clock. 401 00:21:51,440 --> 00:21:55,080 Speaker 1: Was just getting up shaving, felt the house shake and 402 00:21:55,119 --> 00:21:58,160 Speaker 1: felt that something terrible had happened. I thought that there 403 00:21:58,240 --> 00:22:01,480 Speaker 1: was a bombardment of some kind. The explosion was low, 404 00:22:01,720 --> 00:22:04,360 Speaker 1: not so loud as the noonday gun, and he thought 405 00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:07,080 Speaker 1: that it was a shell from a submarine. His little 406 00:22:07,160 --> 00:22:11,640 Speaker 1: daughter downstairs screamed. A second explosion was louder, but still 407 00:22:11,680 --> 00:22:14,680 Speaker 1: there was no breaking of glass. He was sure now 408 00:22:14,720 --> 00:22:17,840 Speaker 1: that it was a bombardment. Ran downstairs, caught up his 409 00:22:17,920 --> 00:22:20,280 Speaker 1: little girl and called to his wife and the maid 410 00:22:20,320 --> 00:22:22,679 Speaker 1: to come to the cellar. Put the little girl in 411 00:22:22,680 --> 00:22:25,520 Speaker 1: the cellar, then ran back for his wife, who would 412 00:22:25,560 --> 00:22:27,520 Speaker 1: not come, met her at the door and pushed her 413 00:22:27,520 --> 00:22:30,280 Speaker 1: down the cellar stairs, following her. They were all in 414 00:22:30,320 --> 00:22:34,760 Speaker 1: the cellar when the quote big explosion came. Everything smashed. 415 00:22:35,480 --> 00:22:38,879 Speaker 1: After waiting for some time for more, Doctor B came upstairs, 416 00:22:39,320 --> 00:22:41,960 Speaker 1: went into office. A man was there with his face 417 00:22:42,000 --> 00:22:45,280 Speaker 1: cut on, a Doctor B to dress it. Soon many 418 00:22:45,320 --> 00:22:48,960 Speaker 1: people were there to be quote fixed up. Only small 419 00:22:49,040 --> 00:22:52,080 Speaker 1: hurts came first, as Dr B lives near the ferry 420 00:22:52,400 --> 00:22:54,560 Speaker 1: and people were not so badly injured in that part 421 00:22:54,640 --> 00:22:58,199 Speaker 1: of Dartmouth. Later people from the north end came and 422 00:22:58,240 --> 00:23:01,879 Speaker 1: were much worse hurt. One child had his skull fractured, 423 00:23:02,240 --> 00:23:05,720 Speaker 1: broken like an eggshell. The brain substance was oozing down 424 00:23:05,760 --> 00:23:08,640 Speaker 1: over the side of his face. He lived about three weeks, 425 00:23:09,200 --> 00:23:15,200 Speaker 1: So that definitely puts um puts the explosion into perspective. UM, 426 00:23:15,240 --> 00:23:19,200 Speaker 1: But I do like having a resource like that and 427 00:23:19,280 --> 00:23:21,920 Speaker 1: having um having archives where you can look up all 428 00:23:21,920 --> 00:23:25,320 Speaker 1: sorts of letters and pictures and get a better sense 429 00:23:25,320 --> 00:23:27,199 Speaker 1: because I mean, so often we talk about things in 430 00:23:27,320 --> 00:23:30,439 Speaker 1: kind of a big scale, but when you have letters, 431 00:23:30,440 --> 00:23:33,560 Speaker 1: when you have quotes, it makes it so much more personal. Yeah, 432 00:23:33,600 --> 00:23:36,960 Speaker 1: it makes it real. So I definitely recommend checking that out. 433 00:23:37,160 --> 00:23:39,920 Speaker 1: And sorry if we have had another down or episode 434 00:23:39,960 --> 00:23:42,200 Speaker 1: for you here, but I think it's an important story 435 00:23:42,560 --> 00:23:44,240 Speaker 1: and you guys wanted to hear it, and you guys 436 00:23:44,240 --> 00:23:46,840 Speaker 1: wanted to hear it, and um, so I'm glad that 437 00:23:46,880 --> 00:23:49,119 Speaker 1: we got to cover this one finally. And so you 438 00:23:49,119 --> 00:23:52,160 Speaker 1: know for sure now that we do do listener requests, 439 00:23:52,160 --> 00:23:54,919 Speaker 1: So if you have any, please email them to us. 440 00:23:54,920 --> 00:23:57,480 Speaker 1: We're a history podcast at how Stuff Works dot com 441 00:23:57,600 --> 00:23:59,359 Speaker 1: or you can hit us up on Facebook and we're 442 00:23:59,400 --> 00:24:02,399 Speaker 1: on Twitter and Street and you can always find lots 443 00:24:02,440 --> 00:24:06,920 Speaker 1: of articles about all sorts of topics, including probably explosives 444 00:24:06,920 --> 00:24:10,960 Speaker 1: and ships on our website at www dot how stuff 445 00:24:11,000 --> 00:24:16,520 Speaker 1: works dot com. Be sure to check out our new 446 00:24:16,600 --> 00:24:20,000 Speaker 1: video podcast, Stuff from the Future. Join how stupp works 447 00:24:20,040 --> 00:24:23,560 Speaker 1: staff as we explore the most promising and perplexing possibilities 448 00:24:23,600 --> 00:24:27,080 Speaker 1: of tomorrow. The housetopp Works iPhone app has a rise. 449 00:24:27,320 --> 00:24:29,200 Speaker 1: Download it today on iTunes.