|
Eric Davidson (survivor)
John "Eric" Davidson (May 10, 1915—September 9, 2009) was one of the last survivors of the Halifax Explosion. He was two years old when he was blinded by the Halifax Explosion on December 6, 1917. At the time of his death in 2009, Davidson was the penultimate living survivor with permanent injuries from the Halifax Explosion, which killed more than 1,600 people. Davidson was born to parents Georgina (née Williams) and John William Davidson. He was blinded by shattered glass in the explosion, which occurred due to the collision between the SS Mont-Blanc, SS ''Mont-Blanc'' and the SS ''Imo''. At the time of the accident, Davidson was in his family's living room with his mother and sister. He was playing with his toy train on the window sill. The family was alerted to the collision by smoke rising from the harbour. Davidson was facing the glass windows when the blast occurred. The force of the explosion shattered the glass, completely blinding him. Davidson and his family moved to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Halifax Explosion
On the morning of 6 December 1917, the French cargo ship collided with the Norwegian vessel in the waters of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The ''Mont-Blanc'', laden with high explosives, caught fire and exploded, devastating the Richmond district of Halifax. 1,782 people were killed, largely in Halifax and Dartmouth, by the blast, debris, fires, or collapsed buildings, and an estimated 9,000 others were injured. The blast was the largest human-made explosion at the time, releasing the equivalent energy of roughly . ''Mont-Blanc'' was under orders from the French government to carry her cargo from New York City via Halifax to Bordeaux, France. At roughly 8:45 am, she collided at low speed, approximately one knot (), with the unladen ''Imo'', chartered by the Commission for Relief in Belgium to pick up a cargo of relief supplies in New York. On the ''Mont-Blanc'', the impact damaged benzol barrels stored on deck, leaking vapours which were ignited by sparks from the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
