Halifax Explosion Trivia Quiz

Answer: Imo

The two ships were the Mont Blanc, a general cargo, munitions ship from France and the other ship was the IMO, a general cargo, charter ship for Belgian Relief from Norway.

Answer: December 6, 1917

The explosion occurred on December 6, 1917. Halifax Harbour was very crowded with many ships as it was wartime. Many vessels were destroyed or damaged in the this tragic event, but only two ships were involved in the collision that caused the explosion.

Answer: 1,900

Over 1,900 lives were lost, with the death toll rising to over 2,000 within 12 months.

Answer: North End

Most of the North End Halifax was destroyed, being leveled immediately. What was not leveled was burned due to the stockpiles of coal in the cellars for the winter.

Answer: anchor shank

Part of the anchor shaft (weighing approximately 1140 pounds) was blown approximately two and a half miles through the air over Citadel Hill, when the munitions ship caught fire and exploded in Halifax Harbor. The City of Halifax raised this anchor in 1936, mounted it in a rock cairn close to the Northwest Arm, within 200 feet of where it had originally landed.

Answer: Boston, Massachusetts

Boston, Massachusetts responded with unbelievable speed. They donated $750,000 and had medical help there within hours. Every year, Halifax sends an annual Christmas tree to the city of Boston in gratitude for their assistance through the Massachusetts-Halifax Relief Committee. Knowing the symbolic importance to both cities, the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources has specific guidelines for selecting the tree.

The tree must be an attractive white spruce, red spruce, or balsam fir, 40 to 50 feet tall, be healthy, have good color, be medium to heavy in density, and be symmetrical with easy access.

Answer: 16 inches

Sixteen inches of snow fell on December 7th, the day after the explosion. The wind and snow hampered rescue operations. The snow shrouded the ruins and the oily soot that covered everything.

Answer: 25,000

There were as many as 1,600 immediate deaths in the blast, the tidal wave that followed and in the buildings that collapsed. An additional 9,000 people were injured (6,000 seriously). 1,630 homes were completely demolished in the explosion, with 12,000 more houses damaged by fires that broke out from heat lamps, lanterns and coal fires. Roughly 6,000 people were left homeless and without shelter and 25,000 without adequate housing.

Answer: Both of them

Less than a week after the explosion an enquiry opened. The captain and pilot of the Mont Blanc, as well as the commanding officer were charged with manslaughter. The charges were dropped, later because negligence causing death could not be proven against any of them.

In April 1919, in the Nova Scotia District of the Exchequer Court of Canada, the Mont Blanc was declared solely to blame. In May, 1919, in an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, both ships were judged equally at fault.

Answer: all of these

The Mont-Blanc carried a cargo of highly explosive goods. There was 200 tons of TNT stored near 2,300 tons of wet and dry picric acid and also in the hold was 10 tons of gun cotton and 35 tons of benzol. When the ships collided and the fire broke out it ignited the picric acid leading to ignition of the TNT, gun cotton, picric acid and benzol into an explosion that was worse than anything prior to the atom bomb.