The World’s Biggest and Most Devastating Fires

When mankind first discovered how to control fire, everyday life changed on Earth – the balance tilted in man’s favour.

Fire brought light into the darkness; man’s activities were no longer restricted to daylight hours – he had more productive time at his disposal.  He cooked food, kept warm and stayed protected.

As time went on, fire became not only a survival tool but also a risk. As a consequence, since these earliest of times, man has had a love-hate relationship with fire…and all too often fire wins with devastating results.

Here we take a look at just a few of the biggest, strangest, and worse fires in recent years – all were catastrophic, most could have been avoided.

Piper Alpha

The Piper Alpha North Sea oil disaster killed 167 workers on 6 July 1988. The incident led to a major overhaul in offshore safety. A report following the disaster made over 100 recommendations on how safety could be improved across the North Sea.

Oil fires of Kuwait

The Kuwaiti oil fires were caused by Iraqi military forces setting fire to a reported 605 to 732 oil wells in 1992. The raging oil fires polluted the soil and the air – devastated wildlife in the region – the effects of which have had serious regional environmental implications. This war driven fire drama drew fire-fighters from all corners of the Earth and was brought under control as quickly as possible.

In the months until the wellhead fires were extinguished it rained oil, and the sun was hidden by the darkest of black palls.

Texas City, Texas  

The Texas City fire disaster was an industrial accident that began on April 16th, 1947 when a fire started in the cargo hold of the French-registered freighter SS Grandcamp which was carrying 2,300 tons of ammonium nitrate fertiliser.

Steam instead of water was used to fight this relatively small fire in the hope of preserving the cargo. But this was a mistake, as ammonium nitrate produces its own oxygen – and neutralises the extinguishing properties of steam, it is though that steam turned the ammonium into nitrous oxide.

The blast and subsequent fire destroyed more than 1, 000 buildings and claimed 600 lives, including the whole of the volunteer fire department who tackled this devastating inferno.

San Francisco

The 1906 San Francisco fire began as the result of a devastating earthquake that struck the coast of Northern California. The destructive fires that broke out in the city lasted for many days and claimed the lives of around 3,000 people, by the end of the fires more than 80% of San Francisco was destroyed.

Corrupt city officials had mishandled and redirected emergency funds leaving fire services under resourced and incapable of controlling the fire. Many insurance companies were bankrupted due to the huge number of damage claims.

The Mount Carmel forest – Israel

The Mount Carmel forest fire was a deadly forest fire that started on Mount Carmel in northern Israel in December 2010, and spread rapidly, consuming much of the Mediterranean forest covering the region. The fire was reportedly started by hot coals when a number of youths found themselves a quiet, isolated spot to smoke a traditional hookah pipe;  the fire went on to claim 44 lives, making it the deadliest in Israeli history.

It can be seen from the examples above that fires can start in the unlikeliest of places and each can pose its own unique set of circumstances and problems, making the job of controlling them more difficult. Today’s modern fire fighters have at their disposal the most up to date equipment and technology, yet still fire wreaks havoc and destruction, claiming lives, not least those tackling the fire.

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