The
Halifax Explosion was a maritime disaster in
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, on the morning of 6 December 1917.
SS Mont-Blanc, a French
cargo ship laden with high explosives, collided with the Norwegian vessel
SS Imo in the Narrows, a strait connecting the upper
Halifax Harbour to
Bedford Basin. A fire on board the French ship ignited her cargo, causing a large explosion that devastated the
Richmond district of Halifax. Approximately 2,000 people were killed by debris, fires and collapsed buildings, and an estimated 9,000 others were injured.