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| -Signs, Portents, and the Weather- |
| On This Day in history: the Laki eruption begins, 1783 |
| 2011-06-09 |
| Animals died in their tens of thousands, and the people followed: by the end of 1785 over 10,000 people had died, perhaps one-fifth of IcelandÂ’s population, 9 out of 10 from famine. Nor were the effects limited to Iceland: the acidic haze erupted from Laki spread to Britain, Ireland and continental Europe, bringing fogs, acid rain, violently disturbed weather patterns and unseasonable temperatures, leading to damaged vegetation, failed harvests, hunger and poverty (in these circumstances, the French Revolution was inevitable). Beyond Europe, populations as far afield as North America, Egypt and Japan may have suffered the meteorological and economic consequences of the seven-month Laki eruption. According to wikipedia an estimated 6 million people as a result of the eruption. Farm workers died in their thousands in Britain from the poisonous gases. Imagine the consequences if this were to happen today. |
| Posted by:phil_b |
| #1 According to wikipedia an estimated 6 million people died as a result of the eruption |
| Posted by: phil_b 2011-06-09 07:30 |