The Burma Railway (Burma–Thailand Railway) is completed.

The Burma Railway, also known as the Burma–Thailand Railway or the Death Railway, is a historic railway that stretches between Thailand and Burma (now Myanmar). It is infamous for its construction during World War II under Japanese occupation and for the harsh conditions and high mortality rates among the forced laborers who built it.

Construction during World War II: The railway was built during World War II by the Imperial Japanese Army. The Japanese intended to create a supply route between Burma (occupied by Japan) and Thailand to support their military campaigns in Southeast Asia. Construction began in 1942.

Forced labor: The construction of the Burma Railway is notorious for the use of forced labor, which primarily consisted of Allied prisoners of war (POWs) and Asian civilian laborers. The Japanese captors subjected these laborers to grueling, inhumane conditions, including extreme heat, malnutrition, and brutal treatment.

High mortality rates: The construction of the railway was marked by extreme hardship and suffering. Laborers faced not only physical exhaustion and disease but also abuse from their captors. As a result, an estimated 12,000 Allied POWs and tens of thousands of Asian laborers lost their lives during its construction.

The Death Railway: The Burma Railway earned the nickname “Death Railway” due to the high death toll among the laborers. The harsh conditions, lack of medical care, and inadequate food supplies contributed to the mortality rates.

Bridge over the River Kwai: Perhaps the most famous part of the Burma Railway is the bridge over the River Kwai. This bridge was depicted in the 1957 novel “The Bridge over the River Kwai” by Pierre Boulle and the subsequent 1957 film adaptation. It is a symbol of the railway’s history and the suffering of those who built it.

Completion and later use: The Burma Railway was completed in 1943, but it saw limited use before the end of World War II. After the war, it fell into disuse, and some portions of the railway were abandoned.

Historical significance: The Burma Railway is a grim reminder of the brutality of war and the human cost of forced labor. Efforts have been made to preserve and commemorate the history of the railway, and there are museums and memorials dedicated to the memory of those who suffered and died during its construction.

Mother Teresa is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Al Capone is convicted of income tax evasion.

Russian journalist Dmitry Kholodov is assassinated while investigating corruption in the armed forces.

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Eight people die in the London Beer Flood.

On Monday 17th October 1814, a terrible disaster claimed the lives of at least 8 people in St Giles, London. A bizarre industrial accident resulted in the release of a beer tsunami onto the streets around Tottenham Court Road.

The Horse Shoe Brewery stood at the corner of Great Russell Street and Tottenham Court Road. In 1810 the brewery, Meux and Company, had had a 22 foot high wooden fermentation tank installed on the premises. Held together with massive iron rings, this huge vat held the equivalent of over 3,500 barrels of brown porter ale, a beer not unlike stout.

On the afternoon of October 17th 1814 one of the iron rings around the tank snapped. About an hour later the whole tank ruptured, releasing the hot fermenting ale with such force that the back wall of the brewery collapsed. The force also blasted open several more vats, adding their contents to the flood which now burst forth onto the street. More than 320,000 gallons of beer were released into the area. This was St Giles Rookery, a densely populated London slum of cheap housing and tenements inhabited by the poor, the destitute, prostitutes and criminals.

The flood reached George Street and New Street within minutes, swamping them with a tide of alcohol. The 15 foot high wave of beer and debris inundated the basements of two houses, causing them to collapse. In one of the houses, Mary Banfield and her daughter Hannah were taking tea when the flood hit; both were killed.

In the basement of the other house, an Irish wake was being held for a 2 year old boy who had died the previous day. The four mourners were all killed. The wave also took out the wall of the Tavistock Arms pub, trapping the teenage barmaid Eleanor Cooper in the rubble. In all, eight people were killed. Three brewery workers were rescued from the waist-high flood and another was pulled alive from the rubble.

London Beer Flood – 19th century etching
19th century engraving of the event

All this ‘free’ beer led to hundreds of people scooping up the liquid in whatever containers they could. Some resorted to just drinking it, leading to reports of the death of a ninth victim some days later from alcoholic poisoning.

‘The bursting of the brew-house walls, and the fall of heavy timber, materially contributed to aggravate the mischief, by forcing the roofs and walls of the adjoining houses.‘ The Times, 19th October 1814.

Some relatives exhibited the corpses of the victims for money. In one house, the macabre exhibition resulted in the collapse of the floor under the weight of all the visitors, plunging everyone waist-high into a beer-flooded cellar.

The stench of beer in the area persisted for months afterwards.

The brewery was taken to court over the accident but the disaster was ruled to be an Act of God, leaving no one responsible.

The flood cost the brewery around £23000 approx. £1.25 million today. However the company were able to reclaim the excise duty paid on the beer, which saved them from bankruptcy. They were also granted ?7,250 ?400,000 today as compensation for the barrels of lost beer.

This unique disaster was responsible for the gradual phasing out of wooden fermentation casks to be replaced by lined concrete vats. The Horse Shoe Brewery was demolished in 1922; the Dominion Theatre now sits partly on its site.

Al Capone is convicted of income tax evasion.

Beer vats burst and cause a local flood in London, destroying several houses and killing eight people.