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4.0 out of 5 stars
Amazing and unknown piece of history, 30 Oct 2007
On December 6, 1917, the most powerful human created non-nuclear explosion occurred in Halifax Harbor, Nova Scotia. The explosion occurred when a French munitions ship, the Mont Blanc, entering Halifax Harbor collided with a ship carrying relief supplies for Belgium, the Imo, which was sailing out of the harbor. The Mont Blanc was literally a floating bomb carrying TNT, gun cotton, and picric acid, all high explosives that were capable of simultaneous detonation. With the collision, benzol stored on the deck caught fire superheating the ship until the high explosives detonated. The effect of the explosion was to destroy most of the city of Halifax, kill 2,000 people, and wound thousands.
The book tells the story of the events leading up to the human error that caused the collision but that is only a small part of the story. By page 70, the explosion has occurred and the city lays in ruins. What follows can be divided into two stories; the story of the survivors and the story of those who came to help the people of Halifax. The same day as the explosion saw relief efforts from across Canada and the US but especially from the city of Boston which had a relief train on the way to Halifax within 12 hours of the explosion. Ms. MacDonald tells the story of relief efforts struggling through the mountains of New Brunswick in a blizzard that suddenly appeared the night of the explosion. We learn about the efforts of the Red Cross as they use the lessons they have learned from the San Francisco earthquake to quickly provide relief to Halifax.
The stories of the survivors and the horrors they endured (husbands identifying the bodies of their entire family, dozens blinded by the flying glass and wood, children made into orphans searching through the remains of their homes) makes for incredible reading, but the way it is presented is sometimes confusing as we go forward and back in time through the first few days after the explosion with different families. There are some other small problems with the book. The maps are not detailed enough to allow someone who doesn't know Halifax to follow the action. The pictures are printed on normal stock which makes them less detailed. For example, a description of a picture of the Imo tells us to note the puncture wounds in the hull but the picture is so poorly printed that they are impossible to see.
Overall, the book is a excellent presentation of an event that most people know nothing about. It is well written and brings to life the survivors and the volunteers who came to help them. It is hard to read their stories and not be effected
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Curse of the Narrows, 20 Aug 2007
This is a first class book about possibly one of the worst man-made disasters ever to have occurred; a disaster of biblical proportions, killing 1600 people in a matter of seconds, and 90 years on 400 bodies are still unaccounted for. This book should be obligatory reading for anybody involved in Disaster Management and Recovery, providing insights into the practical issues that the emergency planners will encounter. As it occurred in 1917, much of its reporting was lost in the horrors of the First World War, but "The Curse of The Narrows" articulately and effectively exposes a very complex and horrific disaster from which everybody can learn. It's compellingly written and totally addictive.
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