The London Beer Flood
October 17, 1814
On 17 October 1814 a huge vat at the Meux and Company brewery on Tottenham Court Road burst, setting off a chain reaction that released a flood of porter, with estimates ranging from about 580,000 to 1.47 million litres. A wave of beer smashed through walls and into the poor St Giles neighbourhood, killing eight people. The inquest jury decided the victims had died by accident, so no one was held responsible and the families got no compensation.