On the morning of 6 December 1917 two cargo vessells, the SS Mont Blanc and SS Imo collided in Halifax Harbour. The resulting catastrophic explosion occurred thousands of miles away from the Western Front but it was a direct result of the First World War. The war was also essential for what followed. Of the 3,000-troop garrison located at Halifax, 1,500 were awaiting transport to Europe and provided vital support and resources in the immediate aftermath of the explosion.

In this episode, Professor Roger Sarty, a leading Canadian Naval and military historian discusses the late T. Joseph Scanlon’s book Catastrophe: Stories and Lessons from the Halifax Explosion and the military history of the disaster in Halifax.

EPISODE GUEST

Roger Sarty is a Wilfrid Laurier University professor specializing in Canadian naval history and a former deputy director of the Canadian War Museum.

Episode thumbnail: Halifax after the Halifax Explosion, looking toward the Dartmouth side of the harbour, 1917. Wikimedia Commons