On January 15, 1919, the port city of Boston, Massachusetts was experiencing suddenly much higher-than-seasonal temperatures nearing 40°F.  After a normal winter morning, at about half past noon, a giant, 2.3 million-gallon molasses storage tank located within a Purity Distilling Company facility exploded.  The blast unleashed an unstoppable torrent of molasses traveling at speeds of up to 35 miles per hour into the streets of downtown Boston.  The wave moved and crushed buildings, damaged infrastructure, killed twenty-one men, women, and children, and injured 150 more.